u. 


.  DEPARTMENT  OF   AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAU   OF  ANIMAL   INDUSTRY-Bulletin   No.  81. 
A.  D.  MELVIN,  D.V.  S.,  Chief  of  Bureau. 


THE  MILK  SUPPLY 


NEW  YORK,  AND  PHILADELPHIA. 


California 

•gional 

cility 


BY 


GEORi  E  M.  WHITAKER,  M.  A.,  Sc.  D., 

Dairy  Inspector,  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry . 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE. 


-  1  f\  ^  - 

1  <J  0  5 . 


ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUS.  - 


Chief:  A.  D.  MELVIN,  I).  A'.  S. 

Assistant  Chief:  . 

Chief  Clerk:  E.  B.  JONES,  LL.  M.,  M.  D. 
Dolrii  DirivioH:  ED.  H.  WEBSTER,  M.  S.,  chief;  CLARENCE  B.  LANE,  B.  S.,  assistant 
chief.  * 

Inspection  Dii'ixion:  A.  M.  FARRINGTON,  B.  S.,  D.  Y.  M.,  chief. 
Quarantine  Division:  RICHARD  "W.  HICKMAN,  Ph.  G.,Y.  M.  D.,  chief. 
Editor:  GEORGE  FAYETTE  THOMPSON,  M.  S. 
Artist:  W.  S.  D.  HAINES. 

Animal  Husbandman:  GEORGE  M.  ROMMEL,  B.  8.  A. 
Librarian:  BEATRICE  C.  OBERLY. 

LABORATORIES. 

Biochemic  Division:  MARION  DORSET,  M.  D. ,  chief. 

Pathological  Division:  JOHN  R.  MOHLER,  A.  M.,  V.  M.  D.,  chief. 

Zoological  Division:  BRAYTON  H.  RANSOM,  B.  Sc.,  A.  M.,  acting  {ouiog*oi.    ~«-v  ,  ,. - 

EXPERIMENT   STATION.  \ 

Superintendent:  E.  0.  SCHROEDER,  M.  D.  V.;  expert  assistant,  W.  E.  COTTON. 

INSPECTORS   IN   CHARGE. 


Dr.  F.  W.  Ainsworth,  Union  Stock  Yards,  Pitts- 
burg,  Pa. 
Dr.  M.  O.  Anderson,  care  Geo.  A.  Hormel  &  Co., 

Austin,  Minn. 

Dr.    Don  C.  Ayer,  Post-Office  Building,    South 
Omaha,  Nebr. 

>r.  G.  S.  Baker,  6th  and  Townsend  sts.,  San  Fran- 
cisco, Ca1. 

.  L.  B.  Baker,  South  St.  Joseph,  Mo. 
vi.  A.  E.  Behnke,  room  432,  Federal  Building, 

Milwaukee,  Wis. 

Dr.  John  A.  Bell,  Watertown,  N.  Y. 
Dr.  S.  E.  Bennett,  room  338,  Live  Stock  Exchange 

Building,  Kansas  City,  Kans. 
Dr.  E.  L.  Bertram,  care  J.  S.  Gilmore,  Davenport, 

Iowa. 
Dr.  Fred  Braginton,  care  Continental  Packing 

Co.,  Bloomington,  111. 
Dr.  J.  J.  Brougham,  care  Missouri  Stock  Yards, 

St.  Louis,  Mo. 
Dr.  G.  W.  Butler,  care  Drummond  Bros.,  Eau 

Claire,  Wis. 

Dr.  J.  B.  Clancy,  National  Stock  Yards,  111. 
Dr.  Lowell  Clarke,  room  320,  Quincy  Building, 

Denver,  Colo. 

Dr.  W.  8.  Corliss,  Carthage,  N.  Y. 
Dr.  Charles  Cowie,  Ogdensburg,  N.  Y. 
T^r.  David  Cumming,  912  Lapeer  ave.,  Port  Huron, 
•*ich. 

°obert  Darling,  care'Chas.  S.  Hardy,  San 
CaL 

Deadman,  Sault  Ste.  Mari,e,  Mich. 
>rt  Dean,  room  328,  Stock  Yard  Station, 
City,  Kans. 

De  Wolf,  care  Chas.  Wolff  Packing  Co., 
Kans. 

-'»  Union  Stock  Yards.  Cin- 


Dr.  E.  P.  Dowd,  e  /e  White,  Pevey  &  Dexter  Co., 

Worcester,  M.-    . 

Dr.  Geo.  C.  FaviSe,  P.  O.  box  796,  Norfolk,  Ya. 
Dr.  J.  W.  Fink,  c«*e  Swift  &  Co.,  Harrison  station,, 

Newark,  N.  J.    i 

Dr.  W.  J.  Fretz,  Rashville,  Nebr.  

Dr.  T.   A.  Geddes\  care  IL  S.  <:w.-#ti~T* , 

England. 
Dr.  H.  H.  George,  507  Johnson   st.,  Louisville 

Ky. 

Dr.  W.  H.  Gibbs,  care  Morton-Gregson  Co.,  Ne- 
braska City,  Nebr. 
Dr.  L.  K.  Green,  care  Hammond,  Standish  &  Co., 

Detroit,  Mich. 

Dr.  H.  A.  Hedrick,  215  St.  Paul  st,,  Baltimore,  Md. 
Dr.   O.   B.   Hess,  care    Frye-Bruhn  Co.,  Seattle, 

Wash. 
Mr.  G.  S.  Hickox,  P.  O.  box  1145.  Salt  Lake  City, 

Utah.    - 

Dr.  A.  A.  Holcombe,  Aurora;- 111. 
Dr.  W.  E.  Howe,  care  Western  Packing  Co..  Den- 
ver, Colo. 
Dr.  Julius  Huelson,  care  Jersey  City  Stock  Yards 

Co.,  Jersey  City,  N.  J. 
Dr.  F.  W.  Huntington,  U.  S.  customs  oilier,  <;.  T. 

R.  R.  wharf,  Portland,  Me. 
Dr.  Robert   Jay,  care  Jacob  K.  Decker  &  Son, 

Mason  City,  Iowa. 
Dr.  G.  A.  Johnson,  Exchange  Building,   Sioux 

City,  Iowa. 
Dr.   James   Johnston,  care  U.   s.  consulate,   'jr> 

Chapel  st.,  Liverpool,  England. 
Dr.  E.  C.  Joss,  care  Carstens  Packing  Co.,  Taco- 

ma,  Wash. 
Dr,  J.  S.  Kelly,   care    Blomer  &   Michael   Co., 

Quiucy,  111. 
Dr.  F.  D.  Ketchum,  South  St.  Paul,  Minn. 

"«>  of  cover.) 


U.  S.  DEPARTMENT   OF    AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAU    OF   ANIMAL    I NDUSTRY— Bulletin    No.  81. 

A.  D.  MELVIN,   D.  V.  S..  Chief  of  Bureau. 


THE  MILK  SUPPLY 


OF 


BOSTON,  NEW  YORK.  AND  PHILADELPHIA. 


GEORGE  M.   WHITAKER,  M.  A.,  Sc.  D. 
Dairy  Inspector,  Hnreaii  of  Animal  Industry. 


WASHINGTON: 

G  O  V  E  R  X  M  H  XT     PRINTING     OFFICE. 

1  9  0  5  . 


LHTTKK  OF  TRANSMITTAL 


1 1.  S.  DEPARTMENT  or  Aonici  i/rt  I;K. 

Hi  KKAI    (>]••  AM. MAI.  IMHSTRV, 

U'tlX/H'llf/toil.    I>.    ('..    I><T('H,In-l-   .'.    !!>(>'>. 

SIR:  I  have  the  honor  to  transmit  the  accompanying  report  on 
"The  Milk  Supply  of  Boston.  'New  York,  and  Philadelphia/' 
written  by  (ieor<>'e  M.  AYhilaker.  M.  A..  Sr.  I).,  of  this  Pun-eau.  and 
to  recommend  its  publication  as  Bulletin  No.  SI  of  the  Bureau  of 
Animal  Industry  series. 

Respectfully.  A.   I).  MKLVIN. 

Chief  of  I>  a r<jn ii . 
I  Ion.  JAMES  WILSON, 

Dy. — Go. 


Explanation  of  terms  . 
Magnitude  of  the  business 
Where  the  milk  comes  from. 
Large  dealers . . 

Comments  of  dealers  and  producers 
Milk  011  the  farms  _ . 


Shipping  stations  or  creameries 
Description 


CONTEXTS. 


Page. 

PART  I. — TIIK  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  BOSTON  .  1 

Extent  of  population  supplied  . .  1 

Handling  milk  at  Boston  . .  1 
Statistics  of  shipment  _  _ 
Per  capita  consumption    . 
System  of  payment  . 

Cans 12 

Can  stoppers . .  1:5 

Washing  cans .  1.1 

Conditions  at  the  farms  _  _  IT 

Carrying  milk  from  farm  to  cars  .  _  IT 

Handling  at  the  railroad  station .  _  19 

Milk  cars  20 

Freight  rates  ._  21 

Milk  routes  . .  22 

A  route  in  detail  _  23 

Another  milk  route  .  .  21 

The  milk  in  the  city  .  2f> 

At  the  railway  station  _  2(5 

The  peddlers..  2T 

Description  of  a  contractor's  retail  department  2s 

Cream 29 

<  )fficial  inspection  and  regulations  29 
PART  II. — THE  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  NKW  YORK  CITY 


38 
58 

Handling  milk  at  the  station  .  >9 

Cars  used  for  transporting  milk  40 

Description  of  a  milk  route  41 

Freight  rates 42 

Milk  trains    ...  44 

How  run.  time,  distance,  etc  44 

Arrival  in  the  city  4.1 

Handling  milk  in  the  city  .  41 

How  the  price  is  determined  4(5 

Milk  sanitation  4T 


b  CONTENTS. 

Page. 

PART  III.— THE  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  PHILADELPHIA  48 

Amount — Sources — Cars    -  48 

The  cans    .  49 

Freight  rates,  and  how  paid  50 

Time  of  starting — Arrival  . .  51 

The  Philadelphia  milk  depots  .  52 

The  Camdeii  milk  depot 53 

Receiving  stations  compared  with  those  of  Boston  _  „  58 

Places  <  >f  the  dealers 54 

Cans  in  relation  to  prices- .  55 

Shipping  tags  __  55 

The  Philadelphia  Milk  Exchange .  _  56 

Bottling  and  storing  depots 56 

Rules  for  producers 56 

Use  of  ice 58 

General  remarks  on  the  milk  business  in  the  country  _  58 

Work  of  the  Philadelphia  Pediatric  Society  _  _  58 

Description  of  a  certified-milk  dairy  _ .  „  61 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Page. 
FIG.  1. — Map  showing  the  source  of  Boston's  milk  supply. 

"2. — Wooden  plug  used  in  the  Boston  milk  can 14 

',]. — Map  showing  the  source  of  New  York's  milk  supply  41 

4. — Map  showing  the  source  of  Philadelphia's  milk  supply  -  49 


THE  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  BOSTON,  NEW  YORK,  AND  PHILADELPHIA. 

P.V    (iKOKCK    -M.    WlIITAKKK.    M.    A.,    S(  .    1).. 

Ilitiri/  I  HKiH'ftnr,  liiu'caii  <if    \iiinnil  I n<l iixt ni. 

PART  I.     THE  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  BOSTON. 

KXTKNT    OF     POITI.ATIOX     SI   IM'MKl). 

The  milk  sii|)j)ly  of  Boston  really  means  the  milk  supply  of  what 
is  locally  known   as  the  "Greater   Boston."     This   includes  at    least 
municipalities,  the  population  of  which  is  as  follows: 


Boston  ..  560,000     Brookline 

Cambridge  ..  92.000  ,  Revere  . 

Somerville . .  fit.  000     Winthrop 

Chelsea       ,  34.000 

,r  ,  i  .,.,  n  Total  .   N40. 000 

Maiden  .10, 000 

Everett  24,000 

The  territory  supplied  by  the  Boston  milk  system  does  not  ex- 
actly conform  to  municipal  lines.  so  that  doubtless  a  part  of  the 
population  in  contiguous  territory  could  also  be  properly  added  to 
the  above.  For  example,  one  large  wholesale  establishment  handling 
Boston  milk  does  a  considerable  business  in  the  near-by  city  of  Lynn, 
which  has  a  population  of  (>s.()0()  anil  is  not  ordinarily  included  in 
Greater  Boston. 

Probably  we  are  not  far  out  of  the  way  in  assuming  that  the  Bos- 
ton milk  supply  reaches  !>( )(),()()()  people.  Immediately  about  Boston 
and  the  several  small  town:-,  and  cities  composing  Greater  Boston 
there  are  nine  towns  and  cities,  with  110.000  inhabitants:  or.  if  Lynn 
is  included.  17s. 000.  Some  of  these  places  receive  Boston  milk.  In 
many  instances  this  territory  is  so  thickly  -ettled  that  the  traveler, 
noticing  the  continuous  line  of  house's,  sees  no  division  of  one 
municipality  from  another.  The  number  of  cities  and  towns  con- 
cerned has  been  overlooked  by  some  writers  on  the  question  of  the 
Boston  milk  supply,  and  has  led  to  an  exaggerated  statement  of  the 
per  capita  consumption. 

IIAXDUXi;    MILK    AT  ROSTOV. 

From  sO  to  s.*>  per  cent  of  the  milk  consumed  in  Greater  Boston  is 
transported  by  railroad  and  the  remainder  in  wagons.  In  local  no- 
menclature. "  car  milk  "  and  "  waa'on  milk  "  are  common  tcrm< 


8 


BUREAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 


for  these  two  classes  of  milk.  Of  the  railroad  milk,  nearly  all  is 
handled  by  five  wholesale  houses  that  do  business  on  a  plan  which 
seems  to  be  peculiar  to  Boston.  These  large  wholesalers  are  locally 
known  as  "  contractors."  They  contract  for  and  buy  the  milk  in  the 
country,  lease  railroad  milk  cars,  manage  the  transportation  to  the 


FK;.  1.— Map  showing  the  source  of  Boston's  milk  supply. 

city,  and  sell  most  of  their  supplies  to  peddlers  for  distribution  at 
retail.  Originally  the  contractors  did  an  exclusively  wholesale  busi- 
ness, but  of  late  years  there  has  been  a  growing  tendency  to  branch 
out  into  the  retail  busine:-s.  A  part  of  this  business  was  forced  upon 
them  bv  their  beiny;  obliged  to  take  retail  routes  on  account  of  debts 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  V) 

for  milk  due  them  by  the  peddlers;  but  recently  this  retailing  of 
milk  has  seemed  to  be  more  of  a  deliberate  policy.  A  few  large  re- 
tailers buy  their  supplies  direct  from  the  farmers,  but  the  greater  por- 
tion of  the  business  of  buying  and  receiving  is  done  by  the  contractors. 
These  five  large  wholesale  concerns,  though  technically  entirely  sepa- 
rate, have  a  common  understanding  and  practice  in  many  details  of 
the  business.  One  person  is  at  the  head  of  three  of  the  corporations, 
and  it  may  be  said  that  three  ollicials  could  practically  determine 
any  question  of  policy  for  the  whole  business  were  they  so  disposed. 

The  cream  supply  of  the  city  is  not  in  such  intimate  connection 
with  the  milk  business  as  is  the  case  in  New  York.  The  contractors 
do  a  large  cream  business  in  connection  with  the  milk  trade,  but 
much  of  the  city  cream  conies  from  skimming  stations  entirely  dis- 
tinct from  the  contractors'  system  of  milk  collection  and  trans- 
portation. Large  quantities  of  cream  come  to  the  city  from  Maine 
creameries,  which  were  established  primarily  for  the  manufacture 
of  butter;  but  they  have  drifted  entirely  into  the  cream  business, 
and  this  has  grown  to  such  proportions  that  it  has  become  necessary 
greatly  to  enlarge  their  plants.  Skimming  stations  have  been  es- 
tablished, and  the  whole  of  their  attention  is  given  to  the  collection 
and  distribution  of  cream. 

The  milk  of  the  city  is  handled  in  SJ-quart  cans,  so  that  any  use 
of  the  word  "can"  in  connection  with  the  Boston  business  means 
8i  quarts,  although  many  of  the  older  cans  are  so  battered  that  they 
do  not  hold  over  S  quarts. 

STATISTICS   OF   SHIPMENT. 
MII.K   i!Kor<;nT  i.\   i:v  Tin:  KAII. \\AYS. 

For  several  years  the  contractors  purchased  an  unlimited  amount 
of  milk  from  the  producers  on  the  agreement  that  they  would  pay  the 
"  milk  "  price  for  all  that  they  could  sell  again  and  "  butter  value  " 
for  the  surplus.  Consequently  the  contractors  reported  to  the  fann- 
ers from  month  to  month  the  amounts  of  their  receipts  and  sales. 
The  following  table  shows  in  round  figures  the  magnitude  of  their 
business  for  a  period  of  years: 

\  iniilxT  of  cinix  »\   mill,'  rrcrircil  tit   Itoxlnn   [or  .svrrrr//   i/ftirx. 

Year.  Received.          Sold.          Surplus. 


1891 

7  IKK)  IKKI 

1)  IKK 

IKKI 

1.  IKKI.  (XX) 

]894 

'.(  (KX)  IKKI 

7  (XK 

IK  HI 

ri.(KXUXX) 

1896 

In.  (Km  (Kill 

8  IIIK 

1  1!  II  1 

1897 

1  1    (KKI   III  II. 

,-  IKK 

IKKI 

$  („„,  ,HX) 

1899. 

11,000.000 

it  ("XX 

.(KKI 

2.  (XX).  (XX) 

11KKI.  1IUKXUXX)        (t.(KK).(KXI          I.IXKI.IKK) 

19(11...  '.I.  IKK  I.  IKK  I        S.  IKK!.  IKK  t  1.  IKK  I.  IK XI 


10699— No.  81—06- 


10  BUREAU    OK    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

The  table  shows  increasing  receipts  up  to  1807,  when  the  highest 
point  was  reached — 11,789,101  cans.  Since  then  the  receipts  gradu- 
ally declined  until  1001, when  they  were  0,880,808  cans.  This  reduction! 
was  not  due  so  much  to  a  decrease  in  sales  or  in  milk  consumption  as  to 
a  decline  in  the  surplus.  The  surplus  in  1807  was  :'>,0f>0,(>10  cans  and 
in  1001  as  low  as  1,480, !(>(>  cans.  The  sales  of  milk  for  the  five  years 
from  1807  to  1001.  inclusive,  were  fairly  uniform,  ranging  from 
8,07:>.:>;«  cans  in  1000  to  8,4f>(>,137  in  1001.  '  These  figures,  while  accu- 
rate, do  not  in  all  instances  correctly  show  the  growth  of  the  busi- 
ness; changes  in  the  business  of  the  contractors — such  as,  for  instance, 
the  buying  out  of  competing  peddlers — in  some  cases  increased  the 
figures,  although  no  more  milk  was  actually  consumed.  On  the 
other  hand,  increased  competition  from  outside  dealers  might  lessen 
the  contractors'  business. 

In  100:2,  because  the  producers  insisted  on  a  new  way  of  making 
settlement  for  surplus  milk,  the  contractors  quit  reporting  the  amount 
of  the  business.  In  1004  the  State  railroad  commission  required  the 
railroads  to  report  their  receipts  of  milk  to  the  board,  and  statistics 
Avere  again  available.  Hut,  for  purposes  of  comparison,  it  should  be 
remembered  that  the  contractors  reported  only  their  own  business, 
while  now  the  roads  report  to  the  railroad  commission  all  the  milk 
transported  by  them. 

The  following  includes  a  report  for  nine  months  of  receipts  by  the 
contractors  in  1001-0-2: 

Cans.  Cans. 

July..                                                941,652  December.  .  756.707 

August                                                856,878  January.  .  818.077 

September                                        813,127  February  743 , 838 

October  ..                                        846.368  March..  .  875.340 
November    .                                      739,101 

The  next  table  shows  the  receipts  for  nine  months  in  1004-05  as 
reported  by  the  railroads: 

(Jans.  Cans. 

July..  1.112.345  December  .  998.768 

August  1.039.403  January  __  1,016.501 

September  _  1 ,  002,  623  February  .  -  942. 122 

October  968.099  March  1.098.041 

November  931,653 

The  percentage  of  milk  brought  in  by  the  different  railroads  fluctu- 
ates from  month  to  month,  but  is  substantially  as  follows: 

I  Vr  cent:. 

Huston    and    Maine  (>S 

Xe\v  York.  \e\v  1 1 :i  ven  and   Hartford  20 

Huston  and   Albany 12 

TotaL  _  .   100 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,    PHILADELPHIA.  11 

The  amount  of  wagon  milk  entering  into  (he  Boston  milk  supply 
is  entirely  a  matter  of  estimate.  Some  authorities  estimate  it  to 
bo  one-fourth  of  the  whole  amount  and  others  one-third.  \Yhen  the 
railroad  milk  amounts  to  1.000.000  cans  per  month,  the  wagon  milk 
probably  ranges  between  2r>(),000  and  :>:>:>.00()  cans.  Some  of  this 
milk  is  brought  into  the  city  by  producers,  and  some  is  handled  by 
middlemen,  who  buy  (heir  supplies  from  their  neighbors  and  haul 
it  to  the  city,  where  they  sell  it  to  hotels,  restaurant-,  or  retailers. 
Not  much  of  this  wagon  milk  is  retailed  in  small  quantities  by  those 
who  haul  it  into  the  city.  Most  of  it  is  brought  into  the  city  during 
(he  latter  part  of  the  night  and  is  ready  for  (he  morning  1>usinoss. 
The  wagons  which  transport  this  milk  are  not  made  specially  for 
the  business.  Most  of  them  have  a  canopy  top.  The  cans  are  cov- 
ered by  a  canvas,  under  which  a  lantern  may  be  placed  in  the  winter 
to  prevent  free/ing,  or  a  cake  of  ice  in  the  summer  for  cooling.  This 
\vagon  milk  is  gradually  decreasing  in  amount  as  the  agricultural 
land  about  the  city  increases  in  value  and  is  more'  profitably  devoted 
to  market  gardening  than  to  dairying.  Most  of  the  wagon  milk  that 
comes  to  the  city  is  produced  within  a  radius  of  25  miles. 

I'KK    CAI'ITA     (OXSIMI'TIOX. 

It  is  estimated  that  the  contractors"  receipts  average  1.000.000 
cans  per  month,  and  that  the  wagon  milk  is  -250.000  additional. 
On  this  basis  we  have  1.250.000  cans  as  a  monthly  supply,  or 
10.<>25.000  quarts.  This  is  :Uo.OOO  quarts  per  day.  which,  being  di- 
vided among  900.000  (maximum  estimate)  people,  would  give  0.7<> 
pint  per  day  per  capita:  divided  among  sOO.OOO  (minimum  esti- 
mate), we  have  O.Sf>  pint  per  capita.  Hither  figure  is  within  reason. 

SYSTKM    OK    I'AYMKXT. 

The  price  which  the  contractor-  pay  the  producers  for  milk  depends 
upon  the  distance  that  the  milk  must  be  transported.  The  city  price 
being  fixed,  the  following  i>  the  scale  of  discounts  per  can  of  S] 
quarts: 

For  stations  between   17  and  '2'.\  miles  from  Boston  (i 

For  stations  between  L'.'l  and  .'»i>  miles  from  Boston  7 

For  stations  between  :'>f>  and  .">•'>  miles  from  Boston 
For  stations  between  ."if,  and  7f>  miles  from  Boston  '.i 

And  1  cent  more  for  each  additional  '_'()  miles. 

This  discount  include-  not  only  the  freight,  but  the  expen-e  of  han- 
dling the  milk  and  the  contractor-'  profit-.  There  are  -o  many  factors 
which  affect  the  oxpon-e  that  the  producer  ha-  no  \vav  of  knowing 
exactly  the  co-t  of  transportation  alone.  The  car-  are  lea-ed  at  a  fixed 
rate  by  the  year,  and  if  a  car  i-  completely  filled  the  co.-t  of  freight 


'J  IJUKKAl?    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

per  can  is  much  less  than  when  a  car  is  only  partly  filled.  Again,  the 
contractors  have  ice  houses  at  the  largest  shipping  stations  and  fur- 
nish their  own  supplies  in  a  large  measure,  reducing  the  cost  of  refrig- 
eration to  a  minimum.  The  inability  of  the  producers  to  ascertain 
the  contractors'  profits  and  the  exact  cost  of  transportation  sometimes 
causes  discontent. 

A  Ye  have  alluded  to  the  old-time  method  of  settling,  for  surplus 
milk  by  paying  for  its  butter  value  and  to  the  abandonment  of  this 
plan  for  another  one.  The  change  was  brought  about  primarily  l>v 
the  influence  of  the  producers'  organization.  AYhen  the  producers 
complained  of  the  old  system,  with  its  uncertainties  and  the  oppor- 
tunity for  distrust,  and  asked  for  a  uniform  price  for  all  milk  whether 
surplus  or  not.  the  contractors  replied  in  effect  that  they  would 
lake  their  chances  if  the  price  was  cut  '2  cents  per  can.  This  was 
allowed  by  the  producers,  and  this  '2  cents  is  now  spoken  of  as  a 
"  carrying  charge."  For  instance,  the  Boston  price  of  milk  for  the, 
summer  of  1905  was  374  cents  per  can.  To  get  at  the  figure  which 
the  farmer  received,  deduct  from  this  37},  cents  the  -2  cents  for  the 
"  carrying  charge  "  and  also  the  proper  discount,  as  shown  above. 
The  contractors  also  asked  that  the  producers  exert  themselves  to 
bring  about  more  even  production,  so  that  the  supply  would  be 
more  uniform  in  quantity  and  the  contractors  be  saved  the  large 
loss  incident  to  paying  for  surplus  milk  that  must  be  made  into 
butter.  After  much  thought  this  plan  has  been  devised:  Each  pro- 
ducer, at  the  beginning  of  each  six  months  price  period,  states  the 
amount  he  intends  to  produce  during  the  coming  six  months.  If  the 
total  of  the  amounts  exceeds  the  probable  demand,  each  producer  is 
cut  down  pro  r.ita.  Then  it  is  understood  that  the  price  agreed  upon 
for  the  period  shall  apply  to  that  rating,  with  a  range  of  one-sixth  in 
either  direction,  and  that  the  farmer  shall  be  paid  1  cent  less  for  all 
Ins  shipments  for  each  additional  one-sixth  variation.  To  illustrate: 
If  a  farmer  is  expected  to  produce  :>00  cans  in  any  month,  he  can  drop 
to  •_?•">()  or  increase  to  o.*>0  and  get  the  full  price  (37-.,  cents  less  the  two 
discounts),  but  if  lie  falls  below  'J50  or  runs  over  3.">0  he  gets  1  cent 
less  for  all  the  milk  he  ships.  \Yhen  the  next  limit  is  passed  the  price 
on  all  his  shipments  drops  another  cent. 

CANS. 

The  cans  most  used  in  the  Boston  milk  business  are  made  to  con- 
lain  s]  quarts.  The  fraction  is  added  so  that  there  will  surely  be  '2 
gallons  when  the  cans  become  battered  from  hard  usage.  As  Boston 

the  commercial  center  of  New  England,  this  style  of  can  is  gener- 
in the  -mailer  citie>  and  towns  of  this  section,  although  the 
Providence.  II.  I.,  can  contains  10  quarts.  These  81-quart  cans  are 


i 

a         u-e 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,   PHILADELPHIA.  13 

convenient  in  loading  a  wagon  or  car.  as  the  handle  is  on  one  side  and 
one  man  can  easily  take  two  cans  in  each  hand.  They  are  also  con- 
venient for  the  small  producer,  who  can  ship  milk  to  the  city, 
although  his  dairy  produces  hut  one  can.  These  cans  go  into  the  car 
as  they  leave  the  dairy  and  at  the  terminal  are  turned  over  to  the  city 
dealer;  hence  they  are  convenient  also  at  the  city  end  of  the  line  for 
delivering  to  the  small  grocer  or  restaurant  keeper,  who  may  not  care 
to  handle  more  than  a  can  or  two.  Occasionally  one  may  see  on  a 
milk  train  or  about  the  depot  of  some  wholesaler  a  few  of  the  New 
York  40-qnart  cans,  which  are  used  as  carriers  for  milk  for  the  con- 
tractors' own  retail  trade;  hut  these  cans  are  not  popular  among 
those  who  have  to  handle  them  after  having  been  accustomed  to 
the  smaller  cans.  Some  of  the  contractors  are  experimenting  with  a 
new-style  can.  It  has  somewhat  the  shape  of  the  New  York  can.  but 
has  just  ~2\  times  the  capacity  of  the  regular  cans — -21  |  quarts.  It  is 
not  so  heavy  as  the  40-quart  can.  is  more  easily  cleaned  than  the  Hi- 
quart  can.  and  has  a  wider  top.  Some  new  cans  recently  adopted 
experimentally  to  a  limited  extent  contain  H]  quarts,  but  have  a  con- 
cave bottom,  so  that  all  the  milk  that  drains  down  the  sides,  after  tin- 
cans  are  emptied,  settles  at  the  center  of  the  bottom  of  the  can.  This 
makes  washing  easier,  as  there  are  no  corners  to  cause  trouble. 


CAN    STOPPERS. 


For  years  the  stoppers  of  the  cans  have  been  wooden  pings.  These 
have  the  advantage  of  sealing  the  can  perfectly,  for  a  tap  with  a 
hammer  drives  the  plug  in  so  tightly  that  the  can  is  almost  hermet- 
ically sealed.  If  there  is  need  of  piling  up  the  cans  in  tiers,  or 
''stacking"  them,  these  wooden  plugs  make  a  firm  and  level  surface 
for  sustaining  the  tier  and  are  not  injured  by  the  added  weight.  The 
convenience  of  this  kind  of  stopper  and  the  fact  that  it  is  the  kind 
used  in  Boston  has  led  to  its  adoption  all  over  New  Kngland  in  the 
milk  business  of  the  other  cities  and  towns. 

Modern  knowledge  of  bacteriology  and  the  effect  of  bacteria  on 
milk,  however,  has  shown  the  undesirability  of  such  -topper-  even 
when  apparently  clean.  In  time  they  became  so  battered  and  full 
of  cracks  that  it  is  impossible  to  sterili/e  them.  A  -topper  wa- 
taken  from  a  shipping  station  where  the  stoppers  were  treated  with 
steam  so  liberally  that  thev  had  all  the  appearance  of  be  inn1  fully 
sterili/ed.  Any  ordinary  inspection  would  have  pa— ed  it  a-  being 
perfectly  clean  and  dry.  It  was  examined  by  the  barteriologi-t  of 
the  Dairy  Division,  who  took  scrapings  from  the  end  and  from  -OHH- 
of  the  cracks  with  a  sharp  knife,  and  from  the-e  made  gelatin  plate- 
in  the  usual  way.  Although  a  dilution  representing  <U  )<)<).")  gram 
of  wood  was  used,  the  plates  were  all  liquefied  bv  bacteria.  Tiii- 


14 


BUUKAU    OF    ANIMAL    TNI>ITSTHY. 


indicated  thai  the  surface  of  (lie  wood  contained  a  large  number  of 
bacteria,  Ihc  presence  of  which  in  milk  would  he  undesirable.  An- 
other stopper  taken  from  an  empty  can  in  a  milk  car  was  a  fair 
sample  of  many  of  the  stoppers  that  are  returned  every  hot  summer 
day  to  the  farmers  for  their  wives  to  wash.  The  bacteriologist 
reported  the  ends  of  this  stopper  and  the  cracks  to  he  completely 
covered  with  mold.  The  mold  was  removed  from  the  end  of  the 
stopper  by  scraping,  hut  the  cracks  were  so  thoroughly  impregnated 
with  molds  that  no  examination  of  them  was  attempted.  A  drop 
of  the  lirst  dilution  added  to  a  flask  of  sterile  milk  cm-died  the  milk  in 
twenty-four  hours,  with  digestion  and  gas  formation.  The  gelatin 
plates  gave  the  following  results  per  gram  of  wood  : 

I'.actevia   dijjestin.u:  milk    .  2.7(50,000 

liacteria   producing  i,r:isxy  fermentation  __  (580,000 

Remainder,  mostly  lactic-acid   formers. _  .   .11*.  240,  000 


Total    _  .V>.  U80.  000 

What  happens  to  such  stoppers  in  the  hands  of  the  farmer?  They 
receive  treatment  varying  with  the  disposition  of  the  farmers  and 

their  wives.  In  some  cases 
the  outside  of  the  stopper 
is  washed  in  the  ordinary 
way  of  washing  any  uten- 
sil :  in  others  the  stoppers, 
after  being  washed,  are 
placed  in  boiling  water.  In 
one  instance  an  unusually 
neat  woman  was  found  who 
placed  the  stoppers  in  a 
kettle  of  water  and  boiled 
them.  A  stopper  was  taken 
from  a  clean  dairy  which  seemed  to  be  well  managed.  This  wa^ 
believed  to  have  been  given  a  little  more  thorough  treatment  than  the 
average — certainly  no  worse.  The  stopper  appeared  absolutely  clean 
and  was  dry.  Gelatin  plates  were  prepared  in  the  usual  way  and  the 
count  showed  a  total  of  DO.OOO  bacteria  per  gram  of  wood — that  is. 
the  end  wood  which  would  come  in  contact  with  the  milk.  This 
stopper  had  been  "scalded"  and  was  probably  as  clean  as  it  was 
possible  to  make  it  with  ordinary  farm  accommodations. 

The  board  of  health  of  the  city  of  Ilolyoke.  declaring  that  the 
wooden  plugs  are  a  source  of  filth  and  cause  of  sickness,  has  pro- 
hibited their  use.  The  milk  inspector  of  the  city  will  not  license 
per>on>  to  deal  in  milk  unless  this  order  is  complied  with. 

Figure  •_!  illustrates  the  characteristic  wooden  plug,  or  stopper,  for 


Wooden   \>\\ig  used   in   (lie  Boston   milk 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,  NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  If) 

the  typical  Boston  Si -quart  can.  The  milk  contractors  or  wholesalers 
supplying  the  Boston  market,  realizing  the  iindesirabiltiy  of  these 
stoppers  from  the  sanitary  standpoint,  have  experimented  with  several 
forms  of  tin  covers.  They  are  more  costly  than  the  wooden  plugs, 
and  to  prevent  loss  thev  are  attached  to  the  can  by  a  short  chain. 
These  tin  covers  answer  fairly  well  the  purpose  of  presenting  a  level 
lop  for  convenience  in  piling  up.  or  stacking;  but  they  meet  with 
general  disfavor  by  the  trade.  There  is  a  depression  in  the  top  to 
hold  the  rin<»;  to  which  the  chain  is  attached.  This  catches  dirt,  which 
eventually  finds  its  way  into  the  milk.  Tin  covers  do  not  lit  the  cans 
so  tightly  and  firmly  as  do  wooden  plug's,  hence  there  is  more  or  less 
trouble  from  leakage.  To  obviate  this  some  handlers  of  cans  try  to 
make  the  tin  covers  hold  better  by  driving  them  on  with  a  hammer, 
as  they  do  the  wooden  plu^s.  This  operation  results  in  cracking  the 
tin,  and  these  cracks  harbor  dirt  and  sour  milk,  and  the  conditions 
are  sometimes  as  bad  as  where  the  wooden  plu^s  are  used.  Further- 
more, the  covers  dangling  from  chains  are  always  in  the  way  when 
emptying  the  cans.  Tin  covers  with  convex  tops  are  impracticable 
in  the  case  of  &i-quart  cans,  as  they  do  not  allow  placing  in  stacks,  or 
tiers.  Such  covers,  however,  are  satisfactory  on  40-quart  cans.  Some 
tin  covers  were  found  with  a  hole  punched  in  the  top  and  bottom  to 
allow  air  to  escape  when  placing  the  cover  on  the  can. 

A  year  ago  one  might  truthfully  have  written  that  the  trend  in 
Boston  was  toward  the  tin  covers.  They  have  so  failed  to  win  favor 
in  the  trade  that  now  sentiment  is  changing  the  other  way  and  the 
wooden  plr.g  is  again  most  favored  by  the  peddlers  of  milk.  To 
render  the  use  of  the  plugs  less  objectionable,  some  of  the  dealers 
are  using  parchment  paper  between  the  wood  and  the  milk.  A  small 
sheet  is  placed  over  the  top  of  the  can  when  it  is  filled  with  milk 
and  then  the  plug  is  driven  into  place. 

The  newest  thing  in  the  Boston  milk  business  is  a  recently  invented 
machine  for  taking  dents  out  of  can:-  in  a  way  that  does  not  start  the 
seams  or  crack  the  tinning.  This  device  is  of  advantage  from  a 
sanitary  standpoint,  for  it  restores  a  smooth  Mirface  to  the  inside  of 
the  can.  thus  enabling  it  to  be  more  readily  cleaned.  The  machine  is 
of  advantage  financially  to  large  dealer-,  for  it  adds  half  a  pint  on  an 
average  to  the  capacity  of  each  can. 


The  cans  used  in  the  Boston  milk  business  are  usually  washed  at 
the  farmers'  homes.  The  empties  are  returned  from  the  citv  without 
even  being  rinsed:  and  when  the  producer  takes  them  from  the  rail- 
road to  his  dairy,  the  washing  frequently  devolves  on  his  wife  or 
daughter.-,  adding  a  considerable  burden,  while  the  work  can  not 


1C)  IHJKEAF    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

always  be  done  thoroughly.  Whether  or  not  the  contractors  should 
return  clean  cans  to  the  producers  is  a  <|uestion  which  has  been  dis- 
cussed at  the  meetings  of  milk  |)roducers  for  many  years.  The  con- 
tractors' side  of  the  case  has  two  points;  the  first  is  the  expense.  The 
contractors  say  that  they  are  now  obliged  to  keep  about  five  cans  for 
every  can  of  milk  shipped,  to  allow  for  the  number  going  and  coming 
to  and  from  the  country  and  for  those  held  over  by  dealers  and  bv 
farmers.  As  the  empties  received  from  the  peddlers  are  loaded 
directly  into  the  milk  cars  while  the  latter  are  standing1  at  the  milk 
stations  for  unloading,  there  is  no  time  then  for  washing.  In  order  to 
have  them  washed  it  would  be  necessary  to  retain  them  in  the  city 
twenty-four  hours,  thus  necessitating  another  set  of  cans.  The  con- 
tractors claim  that  this  would  be  an  unnecessary  and  burdensome 
expense.  They  further  claim  that,  no  matter  how  clean  a  can  may  be 
washed  in  the  city,  it  must  be  scalded  and  aired  in  the  country  before 
it  is  again  fit  to  hold  milk.  They  argue  that  if  the  farmers  receive 
nicely  cleaned  cans  they  will  be  careless  about  the  scalding  and  airing, 
and  the  milk  will  reach  the  city  in  much  worse  condition  than  it  does 
at  present.  The  farmers'  side  of  the  case  is  that  washing  cans  belong- 
ing to  the  contractors  is  not  a  necessary  incident  of  milk  production; 
that  the  work  can  better  be  done  on  a  large  scale  by  machinery  and 
with  plenty  of  hot  water  and  steam;  that  sometimes  cans  are  returned 
in  a  repulsively  dirty  condition,  and  that  cans  which  have  stood 
for  days  in  a  restaurant  or  grocery  store,  possibly  used  as  slop  cans 
during  that  time,  are  in  a  condition  that  the  farmer  should  not 
be  called  on  to  remedy.  Judging  from  stories  told  at  some  pro- 
ducers' meetings,  cans  containing  restaurant  slops,  kerosene  oil.  and 
decaying  masses  of  sour  curd  are  very  common.  It  should  be  stated, 
however,  that  most  of  the  cans  are  returned  quite  promptly  after 
they  are  emptied.  One  large  shipper  told  the  writer  that  although 
lie  thought  all  cans  should  be  returned  clean,  he  had  no  trouble  with 
those  which  are  exceptionally  bad:  if  he  had  one  which  contained 
what  would  not  readily  rinse  on",  he  simply  declined  to  use  it  and 
returned  it  to  the  contractors.  A  common  sight  about  farmhouses, 
where  milk  production  is  a  specialty,  is  a  row  of  cans  inverted  on 
racks  for  airing  after  having  been  washed. 

A  third  factor,  which  is  now  coming  prominently  to  the  front,  is 
the  work  of  medical  men  and  boards  of  health.  These  are  alert  for 
the  improvement  of  the  milk  supply  and  call  attention  to  faults 
in  the  milk  situation.  Conditions  which  were  once  considered-good 
enough  are  now  regarded  as  intolerable,  owing  to  the  information 
which  modern  bacteriological  investigations  have  made  available. 
The  contractors  admit,  by  implication  at  least,  that  conditions  which 
formerlv  existed  were  not  perfect.  They  are  now  experimenting 
with  different  kinds  of  cans  and  making  other  changes  and  improve- 


MILK    SUPPLY    OK     BOSTON,    N  KW     YORK,    1'U  I  LADKLPI I  I  A.  17 

ments.  For  instance,  with  the  can  holding  t\vo  and  one-half  times 
as  much  as  the  common  S.1, -quart  can  it  is  found  that  fewer  are  re- 
quired in  proportion  to  the  business  done,  and  that  these  can  readily 
he  washed  and  sterili/ed  he  fore  being  returned  to  (lie  farmers.  It 
is  also  found  that  the  milk  comes  to  the  city  in  better  condition  in 
these  cans,  furnishing  a  selfish  argument  for  a  gradual  change  in 
the  system  of  returning  dirty  cans  to  the  farmers. 

In  September,  11)05,  the  producers  agreed  to  take  one-half  cent  less 
per  can  if  the  contractors  should  return  clean  cans  to  them. 

CONDITIONS    AT   THK    FA1OIS. 

Boston  has  no  system  of  certified  milk,  and  none  of  the  large  con- 
tractors make  a  specialty  of  milk  of  extra  quality  at  extra  prices; 
hut  several  large  producers  who  can  control  all  the  conditions  of 
production  sell  milk  above  the  average  in  percentage  of  fat  and  also 
in  cleanliness,  receiving  an  adequate  price  for  Mich  quality.  Neither 
has  Boston  any  large  firm  of  wholesalers  who  can  and  \\ill  make 
exacting  regulations.  Still,  the  Boston  contractors  are  watchful 
over  their  supply,  and  have  a  system  of  inspecting  stable-  and  of 
cautioning  producers  when  had  conditions  are  found.  The  con- 
tractors do  some  educational  work  also  in  giving  instruct  ions  as  to 
the  proper  manner  of  caring  for  milk,  especially  as  to  the  impor- 
tance of  promptly  removing  it  from  the  stable  and  cooling  to  at 
least  50-  F..  as  the  first  half  hour  in  the  life  of  the  milk  is  the  most 
critical.  The  contractors  require  the  producer.-  to  have  an  ice  Hip- 
ply,  and  in  one  instance  a  contractor  gave  each  of  his  producer.-  a 
thermometer.  At  meetings  of  boards  of  health  the  carcle-sne.-s  of 
the  farmers  in  the  care  of  the  milk  is  a  matter  of  emphatic  criticism 
with  much  of  truth  in  the  statements,  especially  in  view  of  the  in- 
creasing information  as  to  the  way  in  which  milk  should  be  han- 
dled :  but.  on  the  other  hand,  there  are  manv  intelligent,  conscientious 
farmers  who  are  painstaking  and  who  produce  a  clean  article. 

Further  attention  is  given  this  subject  under  the  heading  "  Official 
inspection  "  (pp.  iJD-.'U  ). 

<  AI;I;YI\<;   MILK    FROM    KAK.M   TO  CAIJS. 

The  iirst  step  in  the  transportation  of  milk  is  from  the  farm  to  the 
railroad  station.  This  work  is  uniallv  done  bv  the  farmer.  There 
are  no  wagon-  for  transporting  milk  from  farm  to  car-  that  are  con- 
structed with  the  special  idea  of  keeping  the  milk  cool  in  summer  and 
from  free/ing  in  the  winter.  Kvery  conceivable  kind  of  vehicle  i- 
used.  from  top  carriages  to  very  rickety  wagons.  In  two  instances 
the  writer  has  seen  wheelbarrows  used.  Often  it  i-  the  daily  duty  of 

lOCiJ.t!) — No.   SI — 00 o 


1<S  lU'KKAl"    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

the  Farmer's  hoy  to  drive  the  load  of  milk  to  the  railroad,  and  sonic- 
times  the  wife  or  daughter  does  this  work.  Average  dairies  produce 
from  fifteen  to  twenty  cans  per  day.  which  is  not  a  large  load. 

When  the  milk  leaves  the  farm  it  is  supposed  to  have  been  cooled 
down  to  about  .">()'-'  K..  the  exception  being  morning's  milk  produced 
near  the  railroad,  which  is  taken  at  once  to  the  car.  When  placed 
on  the  wagon  for  transportation  to  the  station,  it  is  carefully  covered 
with  a  horse  blanket  or  piece  of  canvas.  When  the  drive  is  a  long 
one  a  cake  of  ice  may  be  placed  under  the  cover  in  the  summer  or  a 
lighted  lantern  in  the  winter.  The  average  length  of  haul  where  the 
farmer  carries  his  own  product  to  the  railroad  is  :>  or  4  miles.  When; 
the  production  is  small  and  the  producers  live  greater  distances  from 
the  cars,  one  farmer  frequently  collects  the  milk  for  a  number  of  his 
neighbors.  The  customary  charge  for  such  collection  is  -2  cents  per 
can.  although  in  some  cases  as  high  as  H  cents  is  paid  if  the  route  is  a 
long  one. 

When  milk  is  taken  to  the  station  by  a  collector,  although  the  affair 
has  the  semblance  of  a  cooperative  venture,  the  contractors  exercise  a 
supervision  or  control  over  the  collection  for  the  purpose  of  insuring 
reliable,  punctual  service,  and  warranting  the  collector  enough  perma- 
nent business  to  pay  him  for  his  labor  and  investment.  He  must  have 
a  strong  wagon  and  good  horses.  As  he  must  usually  travel  about  \~> 
miles  a  day.  in  all  kinds  of  weather,  seven  days  per  week,  and  on  all 
conditions  of  roads,  he  can  not  do  much  other  work,  and  so  he  must  be 
sure  of  getting  enough  from  hauling  the  milk  to  pay  him  for  keeping 
a  team  exclusively  for  this  business.  Furthermore,  he  must  be  a 
reliable  man.  who  will  surmount  obstacles  and  be  on  time  with  his 
load,  regardless  of  storms  and  bad  roads.  Sometimes  the  haul  by 
wagons  is  as  long  as  10  miles,  making  '20  miles  of  travel  for  tin'  round 
trip.  At  one  railroad  station  the  writer  met  a  driver  with  load  of  1>4 
cans.  In  the  (lush  season  the  number  is  twice  as  large.  lie  said 
that  he  collected  from  ?>'2  dairies,  which  at  that  time  were  producing 
from  '2  to  11  «-ans  each  per  day.  lie  lived  4  miles  from  the  station, 
but  had  to  drive  !>  miles  to  take  in  all  his  dairies,  making  his  daily 
trip  about  l-\  miles.  The  milk  leaves  the  farm  at  <>  or  7  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  according  to  distance  from  station  and  from  Boston.  Where 
the  start  is  much  earlier,  the  milk  of  that  morning  is  usually  not  taken. 

The  temperature  of  the  milk  when  it  arrives  at  the  railroad  station 
is  of  some  interest.  The  writer  took  the  temperature  of  a  number  of 
lots  of  milk  received  at  Barre  Plains  and  Old  Furnace.  Mass.,  when 
the  air  temperature  was  7.")"  F..  and  found  that  it  ranged  from  <V2  :  to 
<>8C.  One  firm  of  contractors  goes  to  the  trouble  of  having  the  tem- 
perature of  the  milk  from  each  dairy  taken  (morning  and  evening) 
bv  it-  agent  at  the  railroad  station,  and  the  record  sent  to  the  city 
aloiiu'  with  the  milk.  Regular  blank-  are  prepared  on  which  the 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  19 

number  of  the  dairy  is  entered  and  against  it  the  two  temperatures. 
The  following  is  the  temperature  record  of  the  milk  put  on  the  car  at 
Canaan,  N.  II.,  on  the  morning  of  August  17,  1904: 


u    /,'            „    /,' 

•  /•'. 

"  /•'. 

0  /•'. 

54 

54 

51! 

")« 

58 

5t> 

56 

54 

51 

5<> 

58 

5ti 

58 

5* 

4li 

41) 

54 

56 

58 

56 

54 

56 

52 

54 

52 

44 

44 

4H 

48 

54 

52 

56 

54 

54 

52 

That  morning's  shipment  from  Fremont,  N.  II.,  was  of  the  follow 
ing  temperatures: 


0  F. 

°  r  . 

"  /•'. 

0  r  . 

°  .r  . 

58 

54 

54 

56 

56 

56 

50 

5(1 

54 

54 

56 

51 

51 

58 

5H 

58 

58 

5!) 

58 

56 

54 

56 

58 

58 

50 

58 

56 

50 

58 

58 

58 

The  temperatures  of  the  shipments  from   Harrington  were;  as  fol- 
lows : 


°  /•'.     °  /•'. 

0  /•'. 

J  K 

°F. 

•F. 

fill         57 

62 

62 

64 

63 

(>:i    '    58 

58 

48 

4K 

56 

51          4( 

58 

58 

53 

r>f  » 

48         l>2 

45 

114 

74 

5# 

51  1         67 

58 

52 

72 

54          fi  1 

64 

5ii 

66 

57         51  1 

48 

60 

H.\M)I.I.\<;    AT    'I' I  IK    K  A 1 1,  ROAD    STATION. 

Most  lines  of  railroad  over  which  milk  is  transported  have  at  each 
station  a  raised  platform  near  the  track  and  level  with  the  car  door. 
This  platform  is  of  varying  si/e:  perhaps  '20  feet  square  is  a  fair 
average.  In  some -cases  a  roof  is  built  over  it  for  the  protection  of 
men  and  milk.  The  farmers  reach  the  station  a  few  minutes  before 
the  train  is  due  and  unload  the  milk  on  the  platform,  or  on  the  ground 
near  where  the  train  will  stop  when  there  is  no  platform.  In  all 
cases  the  farmers  load  the  milk  into  the  cars.  In  some  few  cases  the 
arrangement  of  tracks  and  sidings  is  such  that  the  milk  has  to  be 
lifted  from  the  ground  and  carried  across  one  or  more  tracks.  The 
milk  seldom  waits  long  at  the  station.  It  arrives  just  before  the  train. 
is  quickly  transferred  from  the  farmer's  wagon  to  the  railroad  car. 


!20  BURKAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

and  does  not  have  opportunity  to  he  much  allected  by  the  weather  if 
it  started  all  right  as  to  temperature  and  was  properly  covered  in 
transit. 

Ordinarily  when  the  farmers  take  the  milk  to  the  car  they  get  the 
empty  cans  to  carry  home  for  the  next  day's  supply.  Sometimes 
these  are  thrown  from  the  train  to  the  platform  or  around  the  pre- 
vious afternoon,  when  the  milk  car  or  train  is  making  its  outward 
run.  Sometimes  they  are  unloaded  on  the  inward  run.  in  the  morn- 
ing, before  loading  the  full  cans:  then  again,  the  empties  are  thrown 
from  one  door  while  the  milk  is  loading  into  the  other.  Frequently 
the  empty  cans  are  tied  in  bunches  so  that  a  half  do/en  can  be  handled 
with  one  throw.  These  empty  cans  are.  as  a  rule,  unwashed,  and  on 
the  farmer's  return  to  his  home,  cleaning  the  cans  is  the  first  duty  of 
those  who  do  the  Avork  of  the  dairy. 

MILK  CARS. 

Most  of  the  milk  shipped  to  the  Boston  market  is  transported  in 
cars  built  especially  for  the  business,  which  are  peculiar  to  Boston.  A 
small  amount  of  milk  is  shipped  b\-  express  on  passenger  trains:  some 
of  this  is  for  hospitals  from  selected  dairies,  and  some  is  for  small 
peddlers  who  buy  direct  from  the  producers.  A  further  small 
amount  is  thus  shipped  from  fancy  dairies  to  some  agent  for  distri- 
bution direct  to  customers  who  pay  an  extra  price.  A  small  amount 
of  milk  also  comes  into  the  city  in  refrigerator  cars  on  fast  freight 
trains,  and  a  small  amount  is  loaded  into  baggage  cars  on  branch 
lines  for  reloading  into  the  regular  milk  car  at  the  junction  point. 
But.  speaking  in  a  general  Avay.  practically  all  of  the  regular  supply- 
is  transported  in  the  regulation  milk  cars,  which  are  much  alike  on 
all  the  roads.  The  cars  appeal1  superficially  much  like  common 
express  cars,  except  that  each  one  has  a  small  window  or  two  between 
the  two  side  doors,  and  has  the  word  "  Milk  "  painted  upon  it.  Occa- 
sionally one  sees  a  car  with  a  narrow  door  in  the  middle  instead  of  a 
Avindow.  The  cars  have  the  usual  end  doors  for  the  convenience  of 
trainmen.  Most  of  the  milk  car>  are  4s  feet  long,  inside  mea-ure- 
ment.  In  the  center  is  an  office,  usually  s.l  by  V  feet.  The  oflice  has 
IAVO  AvindoAvs  on  each  side,  except  in  a  few  cases  Avhere  there  i>  a  door. 
Each  car  has  eight  closets.  The>e  are  o.'  ''.v  ^  f<'('t-  '""I  ^"ith  two 
^helves,  accommodating  three  tiers  of  can>.  Each  tier  has  -\n  cans, 
and  thus  each  closet  holds  IK)  can>.  This  makes  a  closet  capacity  pel- 
car  of  T'JO  cans.  There  are  two  doors.  '.}\  feet  wide,  opening  to  a 
-pace  in  each  end  of  the  car  for  receiving  the  cans.  >toring  and  break- 
ing ice.  and  doing  the  necessary  work  of  handling  cans.  ^  hen  the 
closets  are  full,  -ome  can-  are  placed  on  the  open  floor  >pace.  Nine 
hundred  and  sixtv  cans  is  the  usual  carload. 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,   PHILADELPHIA.  21 

There  are-  some  minor  differences  as  to  detail  in  different  cars. 
For  instance,  on  some  roads  (lie  milk  cupboards  hold  10-")  cans  each 
and  the  carload  is  1,000  cans,  or  S.500  quarts.  Hut  in  a  general  way 
one  car  is  a  fair  type  of  all  of  them.  Years  ago  the  railroads  paid 
but  little  attention  to  the  amount  of  milk  carried  in  a  car.  The  car 
was  leased  to  the  contractor,  and  no  questions  were  asked  as  to  the  load 
that  he  put  into  it.  More  recently  there  has  been  a  disposition  to 
keep  a  supervision  over  the  amount  shipped.  Formerly  as  high  as 
1.400  cans  were  sometimes  placed  in  a  car  without  any  fault  being 
found.  Now  the  roads  require  daily  reports  from  station  agents  as 
to  the  amount  loaded  at  their  several  stations  each  morning.  If  the 
load  exceeds  9(50  or  1,000  cans  (according  to  the  road),  the  contractor 
is  compelled  to  pay  for  an  extra  car.  The  contractors  pay  by  the 
year  for  the  cars,  on  varying  plans,  which  makes  it  difficult  to  get  at 
the  exact  cost  of  transportation.  Further  than  this,  a  car  starting 
50  miles  from  the  city  may  run  a  quarter  full  a  third  of  the  way, 
half  full  a  third  of  the  distance,  and  completely  full  the  last  third 
of  the  trip,  thus  increasing  the  difficulty  of  computing  the  cost  of 
transportation.  Tf  the  contractor  could  put  in  '200  or  )>00  additional 
cans  for  a  portion  of  the  distance  in  time  of  flush  production,  it  would 
be.  an  advantage  to  him,  but  would  greatly  decrease  the  possibility  of 
estimating  accurately  the  cost  of  transportation. 

The  contractors  plan  to  have  an  ice  house,  when  possible,  at  the  vil- 
lage from  which  the  car  starts  and  located  near  the  tracks.  They  fill 
this  themselves  and  hence  have  a  handy  supply  of  ice  at  cost.  When 
the  car  starts  it  has  from  '2  to  4  tons  of  ice.  according  to  the  length  of 
run.  The  smaller  amount  is  the  more  common.  At  a  station  where 
milk  is  received,  it  is  loaded  by  the  farmers  into  the  open  spaces  at 
each  end  of  the  car,  and  on  the  run  between  stations  the  carmen  (in 
the  employ  of  the  contractors)  are  kept  busy  packing  these  cans  into 
the  cupboards  or  closets,  and.  in  the  summer,  breaking  up  the  large 
cakes  of  ice  and  shoveling  the  pieces  onto  the  cans  and  working  it 
into  the  vacant  spaces.  When  one  of  these  closets  is  full  the  door  is 
closed  and  kept  so  until  the  car  reaches  the  city.  In  addition  to  the 
trainmen  (two  to  each  car)  employed  by  the  milk  contractors,  the 
railroad  company  sometimes  lias  a  special  trainman  besides  those  on 
duty  in  the  passenger  cars.  The  milk  cars  are  piped  for  steam  heat, 
in  winter. 

FKEICIIT  RATF.S. 

The  Massachusetts  statutes  require  that  all  freight  rates  shall  be 
fair  and  proportionate,  and  that  all  shippers  shall  have  equal  advan- 
tages, and  the  law  gives  the  railroad  commissioners  full  power  to  fix 
rates  for  transporting  milk.  In  practice  this  applies  only  to  small 
shipments,  for  the  large  contractors  are  always  able  to  reach  some 


22  BUREAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

agreement  with  the  railroads  on  car  lots,  and  never  appeal  to  the  com- 
missioners: hut  there  have  been  a  number  of  interesting  appeals  to  the 
latter  by  smaller  shippers,  their  complaint  being  that  discrimination 
was  shown  in  favor  of  the  large  wholesale  shippers  by  the  system  of 
leasing  cars,  and  that  the  small  shipper  could  not  get  milk  iced  in 
transit.  The  commissioners  decided  that  it  would  be  unjust  to  com- 
pel a  railroad  to  run  a  fully  equipped  separate  milk  car  to  give  a  ship- 
per of  20  cans  per  day  as  good  accommodations  as  the  shipper  of  1.000 
cans,  but  ordered  some  arrangement  to  be  made  between  the  railroad 
and  the  contractor  by  which  the  milk  of  the  small  shipper  could  go 
in  the  contractor's  milk  car.  .  As  a  result,  at  a  few  stations  milk 
tickets  were  sold  by  the  railroad  to  the  producer.  These  were 
received  by  the  contractor  with  the  understanding  that  the  milk 
would  be  transported  and  properly  cared  for  in  his  car.  But  the  rate 
was  considered  too  high  and  complaint  was  made  to  the  commission. 
\vhich  entered  into  a  careful  computation  of  what  might  be  assumed 
to  be  the  cost  to  the  contractors  of  transporting  milk  in  car  lots.  To 
this  was  added  a  sum  which  the  commission  considered  a  fair  and 
just  increase  for  retail  transportation,  and  ordered  that  this  sum 
should  be  the  retail  rate  for  shipping  milk.  Then  the  milk  producers 
asked  for  a  retail  rate  from  every  station  from  which  milk  was 
shipped.  This  was  opposed  on  the  ground  that  the  commission  had 
no  right  to  rule  on  hypothetical  ca^es  and  could  fix  rates  only  where 
there  was  milk  to  be  shipped.  But  the  commission  overruled  this, 
and  made  rates  as  requested  by  the  producers.  Very  little  practical 
use,  however,  has  been  made  of  these  rates. 

It  should  be  understood  that  all  this  applies  only  to  shipments 
originating  in  the  State.  Much  of  the  milk  coming  to  Boston  is  the 
subject  of  interstate  commerce  and  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Intel-state  Commerce  Commission  in  case  of  dispute,  rather  than  the 
State  commission. 

MILK    ROUTES. 

Forty-five  to  fifty  milk  cars,  such  as  those  already  described,  reach 
Boston  every  day.  They  are  largely  attached  to  passenger  trains 
which  run  as  slow  accommodation  trains  and  are  popularly  known  as 
"  milk  trains."  although  they  are  on  the  regular  time  tables  as  ordi- 
nary passenger  trains.  In  two  instances  the  milk  cars  are  run  in 
special  and  exclusive  trains.  The  cars  leave  the  country  terminals 
in  time  to  reach  the  city  soon  after  10  o'clock  a.m.  In  a  general  way 
it  would  be  accurate  to  -ay  that  the  cars  start  about  .">  or  ^  o'clock  in 
the  morning  and  are  four  or  five  hours  on  the  road,  but  in  some 
cases  the  car-  -tart  as  late  as  7  o'clock.  The  trains  Mop  to  pick  up 
milk  at  stations  along  the  road  until  they  get  within  three-quarters  of 


MILK    SUPPLY    OP    BOSTON,  NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  23 

an  hour  to  an  hour  of  the  city,  so  that  milk  is  collected  until  9  o'clock 
on  some  routes.  Why  the  cars  are  run  at  this  time  instead  of  running 
in  the  night  we  do  not  know. 

The  milk  car,  as  a  rule,  brings  to  the  city  the  milk  of  that  morning 
and  the  previous  night;  but  when  the  train  leaves  too  early  to  make 
this  convenient,  or  when  the  collector  has  to  call  too  early  in  order  to 
connect  with  the  train,  the  milk  of  the  previous  day  is  shipped  and 
the  milk  of  that  morning  is  held  over.  The  aim  in  the  Boston  method 
of  handling  milk  seems  to  be  thorough  icing  rather  than  rushing  it 
through  to  the  consumer  in  the  shortest  possible  time. 

Some  of  the  contractors  have  butter  factories  and  cheese  factories 
in  the  country  entirely  separate  from  their  milk  business,  but  giving 
them  control  of  extra  milk  for  an  emergency.  Each  of  the  contract- 
ors except  one  has  a  station  on  his  route  where  any  surplus  can  be- 
left  and  where  milk  from  the  longer  runs  can  be,  iced  and  left  over- 
night, and  from  which  extra  milk  can  be  taken  in  anticipation  of- an 
unusual  demand.  One,  collecting  firm  has  two  shipping  stations 
patterned  after  the  Xew  York  system,  at  which  milk  is  received  from 
the  farmers  in  the  hitter's  cans,  clean  cans  returned,  and  milk  paid  for 
by  weight.  Here  the  milk  is  aerated,  mixed,  cooled,  and  canned. 

A  notable  exception  to  the  system  of  running  cars  exists  in  the  case 
of  a  milk  car  which  leaves  Gorham,  Me.,  at  S  in  the  morning  and 
reaches  Rochester,  X.  IT.,  too  late  to  get  into  Boston  in  time  for  the 
usual  sales:  it  remains  in  Rochester  six  hours  and  goes  to  the  city  on 
a  fast  freight  in  the  night.  Another  exceptional  car  leaves  AYilli- 
mantic.  (1onn..  at  3  p.  m.,  and  reaches  Boston  at  (>,  remaining  on  the 
track  overniii'ht  for  the  earlv  morning  trade. 


A    KOl'TK    IX     DETAIL. 


The  station  at  Northampton,  Mass.,  is  the  starting  place;  time, 
5.f>0  in  the  morning.  The  train  consists  of  a  combination  baggage 
car  and  smoker,  a  common  passenger  car.  and  a  milk  car  with  a  few 
cans  of  cream  and  milk  that  came  down  from  Keene.  X.  II.,  the  pre- 
vious afternoon.  In  fourteen  minutes  we  stop  at  Amherst  to  take 
on  '20  cans  of  milk,  and  to  leave  a  cake  of  ice  and  a  few  empty  cans. 
In  eight  minutes  more  the  train  draws  up  at  a  flag  station  where  15 
cans  are  loaded  from  the  station  platform  and  several  empties  thrown 
out.  The  next  stop  is  at  Belchertown.  Here  eight  one-horse  wagons 
are  hitched  promiscuously  to  all  kinds  of  available  objects  about  the 
station;  and  120  cans  of  milk  are  loaded,  while  the  passengers  are 
increased  by  one.  Two  or  three  miles  farther  on  the  train  draws  up 
at  a  highway  crossing  where  there  is  a  small  platform  and  the  usual 
shelter.  Here  nine  single  teams  with  common  wagons  are  hitched 
to  near-by  fences  and  bushes,  while  the  fanners  quickly  transfer  150 


24  BUREAU    OK    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

cans  of  milk  from  the  platform  to  the  car.  Among  the  drivers  of  the 
learns  are  three  girls.  It  is  now  (>.&">  and  we  have  reached  Bond- 
ville,  where  there  is  a  repetition  of  the  scenes  at  the  previous  station 
and  about  the  same  amount  of  milk  loaded.  The  farmers  have 
loaded  the  empty  cans  before  the  train  arrived  and  some  begin  to 
drive  away  before  the  train  leaves,  reading  their  morning  papers  as 
their  horses  jog  slowly  along. 

Some  1  miles  farther  along  we  come  to  another  crossing  where  a 
do/en  teams  are  hitched  by  the  roadside.  Here  175  cans  are  trans- 
ferred from  the  shed  to  the  train  by  the  farmers,  while  the  same  num- 
ber of  empties,  tied  in  bunches  of  10  each,  are  thrown  from  the  other 
door  of  the  car.  This  not  being  a  regular  stopping  place  for  the 
trains  other  than  this  milk  train,  these  empty  cans  were  not  left  here 
the  afternoon  before.  Just  as  the  conductor  is  raising  his  hand  to 
signal  to  start,  a  belated  producer  hurries  his  team  to  the  platform, 
and  has  just  time  enough  to  put  8  cans  (his  day's  product)  on  the 
train  before  it  gets  under  headway.  At  Ware,  an  hour  from  North- 
ampton. \ve  come  to  a  manufacturing  village,  where  there  are  more 
evidences  of  life  and  a  few  passengers  board  the  train.  Though 
there  are  no  signs  of  milk  production  in  the  foreground,  100  cans  of 
milk  from  near-by  territory  are  taken  on  the  train.  At  Gilbertville, 
about  4  miles  beyond,  one  of  the  largest  collections  of  farm  wagons 
yet  seen  is  grouped  about  the  station  and  the  milk  on  the  train  is 
increased  by  -200  cans. 

As  the  train  has  been  moving  on,  the  men  on  the  car  have  had  all 
the  work  they  could  do  between  the  stations  in  stowing  the  cans  into 
the  closets  and  packing  broken  ice  about  them.  The  little  rooms 
have  been  tilled  and  some  cans  have  been  stacked  on  the  floor  of  the 
car  with  boards  between  the  tiers  of  cans,  while  broken  ice  has  been 
packed  about  them.  The  car  is  full. 

At  New  Braintree  only  a  few  milk  wagons  are  in  sight,  and  these 
are  for  the  most  part  headed  for  home.  This  is  accounted  for  by 
the  fact  that  they  have  loaded  their  day's  supply  in  a  car  which  is 
standing  on  a  siding.  Our  train  back's  up  to  this  car  and  is  coupled 
to  it.  The  next  station  is  Barre  Plains,  but  the  train  takes  no  milk 
here.  This  is  a  junction  and  the  shipments  go  to  the  city  by  another 
line,  controlled  by  another  contractor.  It  is  now  S.:>0  and  we  are  at 
I»arre.  About  .">()  cans  are  loaded  at  this  station.  As  many  more 
are  put  on  flic  train  at  (  \tlebrook.  The  section  of  country  through 
which  \ve  arc  pacing,  including  Barre.  New  Braintree,  and  con- 
tiguous towns,  ha*-  the  reputation  of  shipping  more  milk  over  the  two 
lino  than  any  area  of  similar  si/e  supplying  the  Boston  market.  At 
West  Iviitland  there  is  a  repetition  .of  scenes  already  reported — the 
characteristic  milk  platform  and  shelter,  the  group  of  wagons,  and 
the  loading  of  the  cans.  Here  is  noticed  the  lirst  two-horse  team 


MILK    SUPPLY    OK    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,   PHILADELPHIA.  25 

seen  on  this  ride.  At  this  station  is  seen  another  belated  farmer  who 
barely  gets  his  7  cans  of  milk  on  the  train  before  it  starts.  At  Rut- 
land 01  cans  are  loaded,  and  '2  are  set  oil'  bearing  a  pink  slip  held  in 
place  by  the  wooden  stopper.  This  slip  reads:  "Sour — Returned." 
Each  dairy  has  a  number;  these  numbers  are  printed  on  gummed 
paper  and  supplied  to  the  farmers,  who  are  required  to  keep  one  glued 
to  each  wooden  stopper.  In  this  way  the  car  men  can  keep  track  of  the 
shipments  from  each  dairy  and  correctly  report  the  amount  of  milk. 
AVhen  sour  milk  is  returned,  the  number  on  the  can  shows  from  what 
dairy  it  was  taken. 

It  may  be  remarked  that  this  return  of  sour  milk  is  a  cause  of 
much  dissatisfaction  on  the  part  of  the  farmers,  who  claim  that  when 
the  milk  is  delivered  at  the  station  to  the  agent  of  the  contractor 
their  responsibility  should  cease.  The  contractors  claim  that,  milk 
should  be  delivered  to  them  in  good  condition,  but  that  the  nature,  of 
milk  is  such  that  its  condition  can  be  determined  only  by  premature 
souring;  and  that  if  a  can  or  two  of  milk  sours  sooner  than  other 
milk  kept  under  similar  conditions  that  fact  is  proof  of  its  having 
been  originally  delivered  in  an  improper  condition.  The  farmers 
retort  that,  even  if  the  contractors'  statement  of  an  abstract  proposi- 
tion is  correct,  the  concrete  application  makes  the  contractor  prose- 
cutor, judge,  and  jury,  and  gives  the  farmer  no  opportunity  to  sat- 
isfy himself  of  the  correctness  of  the  facts. 

Nine  o'clock,  and  Muschopauge  station  is  reached  and  17  cans 
loaded  and  4  with  the  pink  slips  set  ofl'.  Five  miles  beyond,  at 
Quinapoxet,  C>()  cans  are  loaded  and  1  can  of  sour  milk  set  oil'.  Oak- 
dale  is  reached  at  !>.•>().  Here  a  two-horse  team  having  00  cans 
is  driven  alongside  of  the-  car  and  unloaded  directly  into  the  car. 
while  about  '20  cans  are  picked  up  from  the  station  platform.  At 
Berlin  a  do/en  cans  are  added  to  our  load.  17  at  Hudson,  10  at  Wav- 
side  Inn,  and  half  a  do/en  at  South  Siidbury.  which  ends  the  taking 
on.  This  place  is  only  '20  miles  from  Boston  and  is  reached  at  10._i± 

At  Waltham,  10  miles  from  the  city,  10  cans  are  left  for  some  local 
dealer.  At  Cambridge  three  wagons  are  backed  up  to  a  milk  shed 
and  between  L;50  and  :>00  cans  are  unloaded,  while  a  few  pink-slip 
cans  are  placed  on  the  car  to  go  back  into  the  coiintrv  in  the  after- 
noon. A  mile  farther,  and  just  before  entering  the  passenger  sta- 
tion, the  train  stops  and  the  milk  cars  are  disconnected.  We  move 
on  to  the  station,  while  a  switching  engine  takes  the  milk  cars  to  one 
of  the  milk-receiving  stations.  The  run  of  105  miles  has  been  made 
in  five  hours  and  twenty  minutes. 

A.NOTJIKU     MII.K     KOTTK. 

This  is  a  different    kind  of  route,  and  the  ride  "over  a   portion  of 
it    may   be  described   as    follows:  We   reach   the  station   of  the   rail- 
Kid!  ><) — NO.  si — 01 ; 1 


12<)  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  1NDUSTKV. 

road  at  \Vilton,  X.  II..  about  ~i.'-\()  a.  in.  A  milk  car  is  on  the  siding 
and  a  procession  of  teams  stands  in  line,  each  farmer  waiting  his 
turn  to  reach  the  car  door  and  unload  his  daily  product  into  the  car. 
The  longest  drive  for  a  farmer  is  about  (>  miles,  and  many  farmers 
live  within  'J  miles  of  the  railroad.  About  .'500  cans  are  daily  loaded 
here.  This  car  has  closets  that  hold  !>0  cans  each.  :>0  on  each  shelf, 
and  it  takes  a  supply  of  ice  amounting  to  -I  tons  each  day.  For 
twenty  minutes  the  work  of  loading  proceeds,  when  a  locomotive 
whistle  is  heard  in  the  distance,  and  at  7.55  a  train  appears,  composed 
of  two  milk  cars  and  one  ice  car.  One  of  the  milk  cars  is  from 
IVterboro  and  one  from  ilillsboro.  The  \Yilton  car  is  connected,  giv- 
ing the  train  a  third  milk  car.  After  a  run  of  a  few  miles  we  stop, 
and  Ii2()  cans  are  loaded.  The  same  thing  happens  at  Milford,  and 
small  supplies  are  taken  at  several  minor  stations.  Nashua  is  the 
next  stop,  and  here  a  whole  carload  of  milk  from  Ilenniker  is 
attached  to  our  train.  It  is  a  short  run  to  Lowell.  Mass..  and  just 
before  reaching  it  a  stop  is  made  and  two  more  cars  are  picked  up — 
one  from  Sterling.  Mass..  and  one  from  Ilollis.  N.  II.  The  train 
with  its  six  cars  runs  as  an  express  to  Boston  and  is  promptly 
switched  around  to  the  milk  depot  of  one  of  the  largest  contractors, 
reaching  there  about  10. 15  a.  in. 

The  man  in  charge  of  the  train  is  an  agent  of  the  contracting  cor- 
poration, who  receives  reports  from  each  carman  en  route.  Me  is 
kept  busy  with  his  accounts,  and  has  them  classified  and  ready  to 
turn  over  to  the  clerical  force  in  the  Boston  office  as  soon  as  the  car 
arrives. 

The  milk  on  this  train  is  all  of  the  evening  before  and  that  morn- 
ing. The  evening's  milk  is  all  carefully  cooled,  but  most  of  the 
morning's  milk  is  produced  so  near  the  railroad  that  the  manage- 
ment of  the  milk  company  believes  it  suffers  no  harm  during  the 
few  moments  it  is  on  the  way  from  the  dairy  to  the  car.  where  it 
is  carefully  packed  in  ice. 


When  the  milk  readies  the  city  most  of  it  passes  immediately  into 
the  hands  of  the  peddlers,  or  retailers,  who  are  to  distribute  it. 
Many  of  these  are  at  the  platform  on  the  arrival  of  the  train  to 
take  their  supplv  as  soon  as  it  conies  out  of  the  cars.  Some  peddlers 
take  milk  from  the  same  dairies,  so  far  as  it  is  possible,  day  after 
day.  They  take  the  milk  in  the  cans  in  which  it  was  transported. 
so  that  the  milk  goes  in  the  same  cans  from  producer  to  peddler. 
For  an  hour  or  so  the  city  milk  depots  are  scenes  of  great  animation 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,   PHIL.VDKLPH  I  A.  2  7 

as  the  cars  arc  unloaded  and  the  empty  cans  transferred  from  plat- 
form to  car.  As  soon  as  this  work  is  done  the  cars  arc  hauled  out 
ready  to  he  made  up  into  their  respective  trains  for  return  to  the 
country.  When  the  peddlers  leave  the  milk  station  with  their  loads 
of  milk,  they  go  for  the  most  part  to  their  several  places  of  husiness, 
where  the  milk  is  poured  into  mixers  to  make  it  uniform  in  quality 
and  then  hottled  for  delivery  to  customers.  These  hottles  of  milk 
are  then  put  on  ice  to  he  kept  until  early  the  next  morning,  when  the 
milk  is  distributed,  often  before  people  are  awake,  the  hottles  being 
left  on  doorstep  or  in  some  other  convenient  place.  Where  dealers 
have  customers  who  take  whole  cans — like  hotels,  restaurants,  stores, 
etc. — these  may  be  delivered  in  the  early  afternoon  of  the  day  they 
are  taken  from  the  car.  Hence  it  is  sometimes  possible  in  an  after- 
noon to  buy  milk  at  a  grocery  which  is  fresher  than  the  regular 
family  supply.  The  family  supply  could  be  delivered  the  day 
before  if  it  were  not  for  the  feeling  among  housekeepers  that  morn- 
ing is  the  time  for  milk  to  be  delivered.  If  an  afternoon  delivery 
would  be  tolerated,  much  milk  could  be  delivered  the  day  it  is  pro- 
duced. 

Each  contractor's  milk-receiving  station  is  fitted  up  with  sheds  and 
platforms  adjoining  tin-  railway  tracks.  It  has.  in  addition,  com- 
modious and  up-to-date  buildings  for  offices,  vats  for  holding  surplus 
milk  or  for  carrying  milk  over  for  another  day's  use.  also  a  complete 
butter-manufacturing  outfit  for  utilizing  any  surplus  milk,  and  in 
one  instance  a  cheese  plant. 

THK    I'KDDI.KUS. 

The  places  of  the  milk  peddlers  were  in  many  instance's  verv  lilthv 
and  insanitary.  The  stables  and  the  milk  room  were  frequently  close 
to  each  other,  and.  besides  this,  there  had  been  general  untidiness. 
With  increasing  knowledge-  of  the  effect  of  such  insanitary  conditions, 
the  health  authorities  have  become  more  active  and  vigilant,  and  this 
has  resulted  in  great  improvement  in  the  condition  of  milk  "  stables  " 
and  milk  houses. 

Many  retail  milk  routes  are  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  con- 
tractors. This  sometimes  happens  through  the  necessity  of  taking 
them  in  payment  for  debts,  and  sometimes  through  a  policy  on  the 
I >art  of  some  of  the  contractors  to  control  the  retail  trade  and  to 
eliminate  the  second  set  of  middlemen.  Some  of  the  contractors  do 
both  a  retail  and  wholesale  business  in  the  same  corporate  name, 
while  others  take  a  different  name  for  the  retail  part  of  the  business. 
In  some  instances  a  contractor  select  some  of  his  be-t  milk  for  his 
own  retail  trade:  then,  by  pasteurizing  or  filtering  it.  he  can  place 
on  the  market  an  article  of  more  than  average  quality.  Where  thi> 


28  BUREAU  OJ'1  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

is  done  the  contractor's  milk  depot  contains  more  machinery  and  other 
equipment  than  is  usually  the  case. 

DKSCKII'TIOX    OK    A    CONTRACTOR'S    KK.TAII.    DKI'AUTM  EXT. 

On  the  arrival  of  the  milk  train  in  Boston  a  large  can  (a  mixer) 
is  placed  in  the  car.  and  connected  by  hand  couplings  and  a  short 
piece  of  pipe  with  what  might  be  described  as  a  hydrant  in  the 
platform.  The  milk  is  emptied  from  the  milk  cans  in  the  car  into 
this  mixer.  When  a  can  is  emptied  it  is  placed  bottom  side  up  on  a 
rotary  rack  inside  of  the  mixer  to  drain.  The  rotary  rack  holds  about 
a  dozen  cans,  and  by  the  time  it  is  full  the  can  first  put  in  is  well 
drained  and  is  taken  out  and  returned  to  the  car.  while  another  empty 
is  placed  in  position,  so  that  for  every  can  taken  out  another  is  put 
in  till  the  car  is  emptied.  The  milk  is  pumped  from  this  mixer  to 
a  cooler  in  the  upper  story,  where  it  is  run  over  pipes  filled  with  ice 
water.  From  this  it  runs  to  a  strainer.  This  strainer  is  a  tank  with 
wire  bars  across  the  bottom.  Cheesecloth  is  placed  on  these  and 
absorbent  cotton  on  top  of  this,  then  another  layer  of  cheesecloth. 
This  is  followed  by  still  more  wire  bars  to  hold  the  cloth  and  cotton  in 
position.  When  this  strainer  has  been  in  use  for  some  time  another 
is  substituted,  the  cotton  being  stained  quite  dark  with  the  manure 
and  other  filth  which  have  been  taken  from  the  milk.  The  word 
"strainer"  is  used  because  that  conforms  more  strictly  to  the  lan- 
guage common  in  the  dairy,  but  this  apparatus  may  more  accurately 
be  termed  a  filler.  From  the  slrainer,  or  filler,  the  milk  flow<  to  a 
glass-lined  tank  containing  '2. '200  gallons.  There  are  two  of  ihese 
tanks  in  the  room.  The  milk  in  these  tanks  is  continually  stirred  by 
an  agitator,  resulting  in  a  perfectly  uniform  article.  The  room  has 
an  asphalt  floor  and  ihe  wooden  walls  are  covered  wilh  enamel  paint, 
so  that  the  premises  can  be  kept  scrupulously  clean.  From  ihese 
tanks  the  milk  flows  to  fillers  in  ihe  room  below,  from  which  glass 
bottles  or  tin  cans  of  various  sizes  are  filled  for  the  next  dayV  trade. 
The  milk  averages  li>.7.">  per  cent  >olids — :>.M)  per  cent  fat.  The 
glass  milk  bottles  are  put  into  boxes  and  broken  ice  is  packed  about 
them.  The  pipes  through  which  the  milk  i>  conveyed  are  made  of 
tin-lined  copper  and  are  kept  scrupulously  clean.  After  the  day's 
work'  is  done  they  are  filled  with  water  and  >al-soda.  which  i>  allowed 
to  stand  for  a  while:  then  they  are  flushed  with  clean  water,  and 
!-team  is  driven  through  them.  They  are  put  together  with  "  unions." 
so  that  everv  part  is  readily  accessible.  The  place  ha>  up-to-date 
accommodations  for  washing  and  rinsing  can-  and  for  cleaning  and 
sterili/inu'  bottle^.  A  large  business  iji  modified  milk  for  babies  and 
invalid^  i^  al.-o  carried  on. 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,    NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  29 

One  of  the  large  Boston  dealers  who  puts  on  the  market  a  superior 
quality  of  milk  publishes  a  booklet  in  the  Italian  and  Hebrew  lan- 
guages, as  well  as  in  English,  descriptive  of  his  methods  and  adver- 
tising the  product. 


The  cream  trade  in  Boston  is  supplied  to  some  extent  by  the  milk 
contractors,  their  supplies  being  received  from  skimming  stations  in 
the  country  and  transported  in  their  milk  cars:  but  they  do  not  have, 
such  exclusive  control  of  the  cream  business  as  they  do  of  the  milk 
trade.  A  number  of  creameries  are  making  a  specialty  of  cream  pro- 
duction and  are  sending  considerable  quantities  to  the  city  by  ex- 
press. One  large  Maine  corporation  has  two  creameries  in  that  State 
where  milk  is  received,  pasteurized,  and  separated,  the  cream  being 
shipped  to  several  of  the  larger  New  England  cities.  The  milk  is 
collected  by  railroad  for  these  creameries,  carefully  iced  in  summer, 
and  shipped  in  charge  of  men  on  each  car.  The  cream  for  Boston 
leaves  the  creamery  at  5  p.  m.  and  is  forwarded  by  fast  freight  in 
refrigerator  cars.  It  reaches  Boston  at  0  o'clock  in  the  morning.  It 
is  carried  in  -40-qnart  cans,  covered  with  a  flat  tin  cover  made  per- 
fectly tight  by  a  rubber  collar.  The  cover  is  fastened  firmly  in  place 
by  a  little  clamp.  It  is  sealed  with  a  lead  seal  similar  to  that  used 
on  the  doors  of  freight  cars.  This  prevents  any  tampering  with  the 
cream  in  transit.  AVhen  the  cream  reaches  the  city  it  is  hauled  on 
drays  to  the  company's  depot,  where  it  is  put  into  small  glass  cans, 
or  jars,  for  retail  trade,  and  teams  are  dispatched  to  the  grocers  in 
all  of  the  city  and  suburban  territory.  This  trade  from  the  Boston 
office  runs  as  high  as  1,800  gallons  per  day  in  the  hottest  summer 
weather,  and  will  average  about  1,000  gallons  per  day  the  year  round. 
Incidental  to  the  cream  business,  about  100  of  the  usual  Ki-qnart  Bos- 
ton cans  of  milk  are  sold.  The  milk  mostly  comes  as  pasteurized 
skim  milk,  and  enough  cream  is  added  to  give  it  the  proper  quality. 
The  Maine  cream  is  of  two  qualities — 14  per  cent  and  17  per  cent  fat. 
Some  of  the  cream  is  sent  by  railroad  to  Portland  and  reshipped  on 
the  Portland  and  Boston  boat,  which  arrives  a  couple  of  hours  earlier 
than  the  train.  Such  cream  as  comes  by  boat  is  in  the  usual  carriers, 
and  these  are  packed  in  broken  ice  in  wooden  boxes,  which  are  made 
large  enough  to  hold  a  can  each. 

OFFICIAL    INSPECTION    AND    REGULATIONS. 

An  unusual  amount  of  attention  is  paid  to  the  sanitary  side  of  the 
Boston  milk  supply.  The  Massachusetts  Board  of  Health  is  making 
an  inspection  of  the  dairies  supplying  the  city  with  milk.  A  compe- 
tent veterinarian  is  employed  to  take  charge  of  this  work.  The  fol- 


,'H)  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

lowing  shows  the  form  of  blank  used  for  reports  and  the  particular 
matters  which  he  investigates: 

COMMONWEALTH  OF  MASSACH  TSETTS. 
STATE  BOARD  OK  HEALTH. 
ctioii  af  ddiricx. 


City  or  town  -  —  .     Date  --  ,  1!M)  —  . 

Name  of  owner  —  —  .     Time  of  visit  -         in. 

Number  of  cows  —      —  .     Number  of  cow  stables  —      —  . 

Condition  of  cows  (1  )  as  to  health  —        -  (if  any  are  sick,  note  same  on  reverse 
side  of  blank)  ;    (2)  as  to  cleanliness. 

Condition  of  cow  stables: 

Construction  -       —  .     Approximate   cubic  space  per   cow   -       —  . 
Means  of  ventilation  -      Condition  as  to  light  -  . 


Nature  of  floor  of  cow  stalls  —      — .     Means  of  drainage  —  — . 
Are  the  cows  bedded?  -      — .     If  so.  with  what?  -      — . 

Where  is  manure  stored?  -      — .     I  low  often  removed?  -  — . 

Is    hay    stored   where   cows    are   kept?   -  .     Are    horses  kept    in    same 

stable?  -      — . 
(leneral  condition  as  to  cleanliness  . 


Water  supply  : 

Source  of  supply  (a)  for  watering  stock  -  — :  (b)  for  washing  cans, 
etc.  -  — . 

Distance  of  latter  from  (a)  stable  — ;  (b)  possible  source  of  pollu- 

tion —  — . 

Direction  of  ground  level  from  each  such  source  — 


Milk  : 

Are  the  udders  cleaned  before  milking?  -       — .     If  so.   how?  -        — . 

How  is  the  milk  cooled?  —      — . 

Where   is   it  cooled   and   handled?  -      — .     Where   is   it   stored?  -      — . 

Where  are  cans.  etc..  washed?  —      — .      Where  kept  during  milking?  — 

Has    the    owner    an    ice    house?    -        — .      Is    ice    easily    obtainable    in    the 

vicinity?  —      — . 

How  much  milk  is  sold?  —      — .     To  whom  is  it  shipped?  —      — . 
How     far     is     it     hauled     for     delivery?     -        — .     At     what     hours     is     it 

hauled?  —      — . 
If  delivered  at  a  railway  station,  how  lonjr  a  time  is  likely  to  elapse  before 

it   is  taken   into  the  car?  -       — . 

Signature : 


Name  ur  number  of  cow.  Condition. 


Uemarks  : 


I 

MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  31 

Not  only  is  the  State  board  of  health  making  investigations,  but 
the  city  board  also  does  inspection  work,  particularly  along  bacte- 
riological lines. 

On  April  29,  1004,  the  following  regulation  in  regard  to  the  milk 
supply  was  adopted  by  the  Boston  board  of  health  : 

No  person  by  himself  or  by  bis  servant  or  agent,  or  as  the  servant  or  agent  of 
any  other  person,  firm,  or  corporation,  shall  bring  into  the  city  of  P.oston  for  the 
purpose  of  sale,  exchange,  or  delivery,  or  sell,  exchange,  or  deliver,  any  milk, 
skimmed  milk,  or  cream  which  contains  more  than  50O.OOO  bacteria  per  cubic 
centimeter,  or  which  has  a  temperature  higher  than  r>0°  F. 

During  June,  July,  August,  and  September  •2,-V.)4  samples  were 
taken  and  tested.  Most  of  these  were  taken  from  the  milk  as  it  ar- 
rived in  the  city.  The  results  were  as  follows: 

Per  cent. 

Between  MO0  and  40°  F_  _  4.  00 

Between  40°  and  50°  F   _  40.25 

Between  .10°  and  CO0  F__  .">!.).  50 

Between  00°  and  70°  F__ 


100.00 

Below  50°   F.    (the  standard  for  temperature)  __  5:>.  25 

Above  r>o°  F.   (the  standard  for  temperature)  __  40.75 


100.  00 

Below  10,000  bacteria  per  cubic  centimeter^  42.  50 

Between   100.000  and  500,000__  2!).  25 

Between   500.000  and   1,000,OO(>__  ___       0.75 

Between   1.000.000  and  5.000.000 .._  .__.      12.75 

Above    .").()()( ),(M)()__  5.00 

Uncountable    .  .  75 


100.00 

Below  500,000  (the  maximum  allowed)  __  71.75 

Above  500,000   (the  maximum  allowed)  __  27.50 


00.  25 

During  the  first  season  of  this  work  the  board  sent  out  about  four 
hundred  warnings  where  the  milk  varied  from  the  standard.  In 
many  instances  good  results  were  quickly  noticeable. 


PART  II.     THE  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  NEW  YORK  CITY. 

EXPLANATION    OF    TERMS. 

"Greater  Now  York  "  is  now  by  law  one  municipality;  hence  when 
the  expression  u  New  York  "  is  used  it  means  Greater  New  York. 

The  Xew  York  milk  supply  is  handled  to  a  large  extent  in  40-quart 
cans;  therefore  the  word  ''can"  in  connection  with  the  Xew  York 
milk  business  means  40  quarts.  The  milk  is  hauled  by  the  farmers  to 
milk  stations  near  the  railroad  stations  from  which  it  is  shipped,  and 
these  shipping  stations  are  locally  known  as  creameries ;  hence  the  word 
"  creamery,"' in  connection  with  the  milk  supply  of  Xew  York  City, 
does  not  mean  a  butter  factory,  as  in  other  places,  but  a  place  where 
milk  is  received  from  the  farmers  and  prepared  for  transportation  to 
the  city. 

MAGNITUDE    OF    THE    IU "SI NESS. 

Xew  York  City,  with  three  and  a  half  million  people  credited  to  it 
by  the  census  (li)OO).  and  with  a  large  transient  population  such  as 
every  metropolis  attracts. 'consumes  daily  an  immense  amount  of  milk. 
To  estimate  the  magnitude  of  the  business  presents  some  difficulties 
peculiar  to  local  conditions.  For  example,  one  of  the  largest  firms 
supplying  the  city  with  milk  is  also  one  of  the  largest  condensers  of 
milk  in  the  country,  and  it  is  very  conservative  about  making  reports 
relative  to  its  business:  and  so  far  as  reports  are  made  to  the  State 
agricultural  department  of  milk  received  in  the  country,  the  figures 
represent  milk  received  by  it  for  condensing  as  well  as  for  sale  as 
whole  milk.  Further  than  this,  the  cream  business  of  Xew  York  City 
is  largely  in  the  same  hands  as  the  milk  business,  and  some  official 
reports  refer  to  the  amount  of  "  milk  and  cream  "  shipped,  whereas, 
to  get  at  the  magnitude  of  the  milk  industry  alone,  we  must  put  the 
cream  on  the  basis  of  milk. 

Let  the  question  be  considered  from  the  theoretical  standpoint  : 
Averaging  many  reports  and  estimates,  we  find  that  the  average  con- 
sumption of  milk  exceeds  half  a  pint  per  capita  per  day.  This  figure 
indicates  the  daily  consumption  of  three  and  a  half  million  people 
to  be  s7.").0()0  quarts  of  milk,  not  including  cream.  Should  we 
add  one-tenth  of  a  pint  per  day  (allowance  for  cream)  to  the  usual 
daily  milk  consumption  per  capita  and  use  six-tenths  of  a  pint  as  a 
3:3 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NFAV    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  33 

multiplier,  the  product  would  be  1,050,000  quarts  per  day.  These 
estimates  are  based  on  the  ruling  daily  consumption  of  milk  and 
cream  in  smaller  places,  which  have  not  the  large  transient  population 
of  New  York. 

Taking  the  best  statistics  which  we  can  find,  we  note  that  Bulletin 
No.  25,  Division  of  Statistics,  United  States  Department  of  Agri- 
culture (p.  18)  estimates  the  New  York  "  milk  and  cream*'  supply 
at  400,000,000  quarts  per  year,  which  is  1,05)8,1(52  quarts  per  day. 
The  same  bulletin  (p.  22)  quotes  the  compilation  of  a  railroad  freight 
agent,  who  figures  up  the  receipts  of  milk  and  cream  for  1002  as 
428,000,000  quarts.  This  would  be  1,175,800  quarts  per  day.  The 
State  department  of  agriculture  in  Bulletin  No.  0  (p.  2)  reports  the 
amount  of  milk  shipped  from  stations  in  the  State  for  the  year  1002 
as  888,000,000  quarts,  with  an  additional  15,000,000  quarts  of  cream, 
these  shipments  thus  aggregating  808,000,000  quarts  of  milk  and 
cream  per  year,  or  1,087,070  quarts  per  day.  These  figures  from 
the  State  report  should  be  reduced  by  the  amounts  shipped  to  other 
places  than  New  York  City  and  increased  by  the  amount  sent  from 
outside  of  the  State  to  the  metropolis.  The  New  York  City  depart- 
ment of  health,  in  its  report  for  1002  (p.  144),  states:  "The  amount 
of  milk  consumed  in  New  York  [City]  is  somewhat  less  than  a  million 
and  a  half  quarts  daily."  Health  Commissioner  Darlington  estimates 
the  consumption  of  milk  in  January,  1005,  at  1,888,000  quarts  daily, 
as  follows : 

Manhattan    800,000 

Brooklyn    .  .  400,  (XX) 

Bronx  «.)(),  000 

Queens    _  80,  000 

Richmond  18,000 

There  are  no  great  discrepancies  between  these  various  estimates 
and  reports.  It  is  safe  to  infer  that  if  the  cream  consumed  were 
put  on  the.  basis  of  milk  the  industry  would  be  shown  to  amount  to 
over  1,500,000  quarts  daily.  If  the  cows  which  produce  this  supply 
of  milk  average  7i  quarts  daily,  over  200,000  cows  would  be  required. 

WHERE    THE    MILK    COMES    FROM". 

Health  Commissioner  Darlington  estimates  that  87  per  cent  of 
the  milk  and  cream  consumed  in  New  York  City  is  produced  in  the 
State  of  New  York.  This  milk  comes  from  distances  varying  from 
40  to  400  miles.  The  balance  of  the  supply  comes  from  northern 
New  Jersey,  northeastern  Pennsylvania,  western  Connecticut,  and 
southwestern  Massachusetts. 

In  regard  to  the  87  per  cent  of  milk  from  the  State,  this  may  be 
said  as  to  its  origin :  The  New  York  City  health  department  esti- 


34 


BUREAU    0V    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 


mates  that  400  creameries  ship  milk  to  the  city.  The  previously 
mentioned  bulletin  of  the  State  department  of  agriculture  lists  539 
milk  stations  in  the  State.  This  list  includes  those  shipping  milk  to 
other  cities,  but  does  not  include  those  out  of  the  State  which  send 
milk  to  Xew  York.  But  an  analysis  of  the  location  of  the  539  milk  sta- 
tions  in  the  State  will  indicate  the  relative  milk-shipping  importance 
of  different  counties.  The  following  table  gives  the  number  of  ship- 
ping stations  in  the  thirteen  leading  counties,  as  well  as  their  rela- 
tive rank : 


Rank. 

County. 

Stations. 

Rank. 

County. 

Stations. 

1 

Orange 

71 

Sullivan 

!>4 
20 

IT 
17 
Hi 
16 

, 

Delaware 

52   ' 
40 
30 

•>7 

25 

8 

Brooine 

8 

9  
10... 

4 

Chenango 

[Herkimer 

|Dutrhess 

ITioga 

joneida 

[Cheiuung 

c, 

Cortland  .. 

The  following  table  gives  the  relative  order  of  the  leading  counties, 
based  on  the  amount  of  milk  reported  as  received  at  the  shipping 
stations,  or  creameries,  in  the  counties: 


Rank. 
1 

County. 
Orange 

Cans  i-e- 
ceived. 

S(>.(XH),IKK) 
(i7,(KIO,0(KI 
44.IKX).(KX) 

:ill,(XK),(KXt 
;J1,(XXI.(KX) 

Delaware 

4 

f  Chenango 

JDutelii'ss 

Cortland  -  - 
[Horkimer 

[oneida    

Both  standards  agree  in  placing  Orange  County  first,  Delaware 
second,  Madison  third,  Chenango  fourth,  and  Dutches** fifth.  Beyond 
these  the  two  standards  show  some  variation. 


LAUOK  DEALERS. 


Most  of  the  milk  sold  in  Xew  York  City  is  distributed  and  retailed 
bv  dealers  who  own  the  shipping  stations  in  the  country,  and  who  are 
therefore  receivers,  wholesalers,  and  retailers,  all  in  one  concern. 
Some  tables  follow  which  give  some  idea  of  the  amount  of  business 
done  by  some  of  the  largest  dealers.  These  tables  have  been  prepared 
by  analv/ing  and  classifying  reports  of  the  State  department  of 
agriculture.  The  first  column  relates  to  the  number  of  shipping 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA. 


35 


stations;    the  second  column  gives  the  number  of  quarts  received  at 
each  of  the  stations  in  15)02: 


Number  of  shipping 
stations. 

Number  of 
quarts. 

Number  of  shipping 
stations. 

Number  of 

quarts. 

1 

14,  (XX),  000 

5  .            _   .  _ 

5,  (XX),  000 

:{ 

10.000,000 

:i  

4,000,01X1 

1 

'.t  (XXMXXJ 

10 

3,UX),<XX) 

1 

H,0<X),(XX) 

2\ 

2,(XX),000 

1 

V.IKNMMI 

122 

],fXXt,(KKt 

1 

li.  000,  000 

The  follow! no-  table  shows  the  number  of  stations  owned  by  some 
of  the  largest  dealers,  using  letters  instead  of  names: 


Corporation. 

Number  of 
shipping 
stations. 

Corporation. 

Number  of 
shipping 
stations. 

A 

.,- 

P 

8 

B 

:>(; 

(•}                             

c 

25 

H 

r> 

I) 

23 

8 

E 

10 

J 

(i 

These  ten  concerns  have  143  stations — or  one-quarter  of  the  whole 
number:  besides,  there  are  two  establishments  with  4  stations  each, 
six  with  •  >  stations  each,  and  eight  with  2  stations  each.  There  are 
K>me  difficulties  in  getting  at  all  the  figures,  but  from  the  best  esti- 
mates we  can  make  it  appears  that  five  of  the  largest  concerns  handle 
(.ne-third  of  all  the  business. 

COX!  XIKVI'S    01     DKAI.KKS    AM)    1'KOIH'CKRS. 

One  of  the  largest  dealers  said:  "There  is  a  growing  sentiment 
in  favor  of  the  large  corporations,  because  the  larger  they  become 
the  more  reputation  and  capital  they  have  at  stake,  and  hence  the 
more  reason  for  being  reliable."  Another  dealer  said:  "The  ten- 
dency is  toward  concentration:  the  small  shipper  is  a  thing  of  the 
past."  A  large  producer  stated:  "The  day  of  small  peddlers  who 
buy  direct  of  the  producers  has  gone  by."  One  who  is  good  au- 
thority made  this  statement:  "The  milk  business  appeal's  to  be  get- 
ting into  fewer  hands.  Probablv  SO  to  00  per  cent  of  the  milk  sold 
in  Greater  New  York  is  handled  bv  12.")  dealers." 


MILK    OX    TITF.    FARMS. 


Several  influences  operate  to  increase  the  care  with  which  milk  is 
produced.     In  the  first  place,  a  premium  is  paid  for  superior  milk  in 


30  nruKAir  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

many  instances.  Milk  produced  from  healthy  cattle  under  approved 
sanitary  conditions  is  certified  to  l>y  an  association  of  physicians,  and 
certified  milk  commands  an  extra  price.  It  is  produced  in  airy.  Avell- 
ventilated  barns.  The  milk  as  soon  as  drawn  is  at  once  removed 
and  cooled  to  38°  F.  and  in  that  condition  sent  to  market.  Such  milk 
never  exceeds  5.000  bacteria  per  cubic  centimeter,  and  frequently  it 
runs  as  low  as  1.500.  In  the  next  place,  the  concentration  of  the 
business  in  large  and  strong  hands  tends  to  raise  the  finality  of  the 
milk,  and  these  corporations  frequently  have  a  reputation  among  the 
producers  of  being  exacting  and  arbitrary.  If  these  large  concerns 
are  particular  as  to  the  care  of  the  milk  at  the  dairy,  they  not  only 
directly  influence  the  quality  of  the  milk  which  they  receive,  but  they 
set  the  pace,  as  it  were,  for  other  dealers  to  follow.  The  largest 
iirm  supplying  the  city  market  happens  to  be  the  most  particular, 
as  much  of  its  supply  is  condensed.  The  regulations  of  this  corpora- 
tion go  so  far  as  to  prohibit  the  use  of  foods  some  of  which  have 
the  sanction  of  the  best  dairy  authorities.  The  list  of  prohibited 
foods  for  cows  producing  milk  for  this  corporation  is:  Turnips,  bar- 
ley sprouts,  brewery  or  distillery  grains,  linseed  meal,  glucose  refuse, 
starch  refuse,  buit'alo  feed,  ensilage,  rancid  oil  cake,  and  gluten  meal. 
Other  rules  of  this  corporation  which  are  of  unquestionable  bene- 
fit to  the  milk  supply  provide  for  thorough  lighting  and  ventilation 
of  stables,  and  whitewashing  once  a  year,  together  with  much  care 
as  to  cleanliness.  The  milk  room  must  be  separate  from  the  stable, 
and  the  entrance  to  it  can  not  be  through  a  partition  or  door  opening 
directly  from  the  stable:  the  milk  must  be  cooled  to  58°  F.  or  lower 
within  forty-five  minutes:  any  representative  of  the  corporation  shall 
have  the  right  to  inspect  any  of  the  stables  in  which  milk  is  produced 
for  it:  night's  and  morning's  milk  must  be  kept  separate. 

None  of  the  other  dealers  go  so  far  as  the  above.  One  large  cor- 
poration which  does  a  large  business  in  milk  of  superior  quality  has 
no  rules  at  all.  at  least  no  arbitrary  list  of  "  thou-shalt-nots."  but 
it  merely  requires  that  the  milk  it  buys  shall  be  as  good  as  the  best 
or  as  good  as  modern  -kill  can  produce.  If  the  milk  meets  the 
demands  of  the  purchaser,  no  questions  are  asked  as  to  details  of 
production  or  whether  this  or  that  food  was  fed.  This  corporation 
proceed-  on  the  theory  that  to  produce  the  results  which  it  requires 
everything  must  be  about  right. 

Besides  the  precautions  of  dealers  to  secure  clean,  good  milk,  health 
officers  are  continually  on  the  alert  to  delect  the  more  flagrant  viola- 
tions of  the  ordinary  rule-  of  care  and  cleanliness.  When  the  well 
is  found  too  near  the  stable,  when  the  surroundings  are  dirty,  or 
when  the  cow-  are  kept  in  dark  filthy  -table.-,  there  is  official  action. 

In  some  of  the  milk-producing  section-  4()  to  50  cows  are  regarded 
as  an  average  dairv  herd,  thouirh  >n  some  instances  there  are  as  inanv 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,    N  KW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  37 

as  100  cows  iii  a  herd.  In  oilier  sections  from  '20  to  '2~>  cows  are  con- 
sidered an  average  herd.  Few  who  live  any  considerable  distance 
from  a  creamery  produce  less  than  one  can  of  milk  per  day.  The 
fanners  for  the  most  part  live  within  5  or  (>  miles  of  the  cream- 
ery and  deliver  the  milk  in  the  morning.  This  necessitates  artificial 
cooling  of  the  night's  milk,  which  is  done  in  spring-houses  or  in 
tanks  of  ice  water.  The  use  of  ice  is  increasing,  and  in  some  portions 
of  the  territory  the  gathering  of  the  ice  crop  in  winter  is  considered 
almost  as  important  a  task  as  the  gathering  of  the  hay  crop  in  the; 
summer.  If  the  night's  milk  is  not  below  C>0~  F.  when  delivered  in 
the  morning,  it  may  be  rejected.  The  cooling  of  the  morning's  milk 
depends  on  the  distance  the  farmer  lives  from  the  station.  One  large 
dealer  has  a  sliding  scale  of  temperatures  for  milk  delivered,  as 
follows : 

°F. 

Night's  milk  delivered  the  next  morning 50 

Morning's  milk  produced  within  1  mile  of  station  and  delivered 

before  7  a.  m_^  <>0 

Morning's  milk  produced  within  2  miles  of  the  station  and  de- 
livered before  S  a.  m__  ."> 

Morning's  milk  delivered  after  !>  a.  m ."2 

Totally  the  milk  is  delivered  by  0  o'clock,  though  there  is  some 
difference  in  time  at  different  stations,  depending  on  the  time  the 
milk  train  leaves.  As  one  stands  near  a  shipping  station  in  the 
morning  he  will  see  every  conceivable  kind  of  vehicle  drive  up  to 
the  station  door.  Some  have  one  horse,  others  have  two.  and  still 
others  four.  As  a  rule,  the  wagons  have  no  particular  facilities  for 
Keeping  the  milk  cool  in  the  summer,  except  a  canvas  thrown  over 
the  load.  The  farmers  usually  own  the  cans  used  in  the  delivery  of' 
their  milk.  When  the  cans  are  emptied  at  the  creamery  they  are 
rinsed,  washed,  and  then  scalded  with  steam,  thus  rendering  them 
sterile.  In  a  few  minutes  after  the  farmer  reaches  the  station  with 
his  milk  it  has  been  unloaded  and  clean  cans  returned  to  him. 

In  some  localities  the  farmers  live  as  far  as  \-2  miles  from  the 
creamery,  and  in  such  cases  there  is  a  different  system  of  getting 
the  milk  to  the  central  depot.  A  collector  has  a  specially  built  wagon 
which  will  carry  40  cans.  These  collectors  are  nominally  employed 
by  the  fanners,  but  ordinarily  the  amount  due  them  is  deducted  from 
the  farmer's  check  at  the  creamery,  where  the  collector  gets  his  pay- 
ment. The  iiMial  price  for  collecting  milk  is  about  10  cents  per  hun- 
dred pounds,  the  amount  varying  somewhat  according  to  distance 
and  local  conditions.  JuM  before  the  collector  is  due  in  the  morning 
the  farmer  takes  the  milk  from  the  cooling  tank  and  places  the  cans 
on  a  little  roadside  platform,  from  which  the  collector  takes  them. 
Sometimes  the  farmer  does  not  live  on  a  road  over  which  the  collec- 
tor passes.  In  Mich  ca>e  the  producer  meets  the  collector  at  the 


38  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

junction  of  (he-  roads.  AYhen  milk  is  transported  long  distances  in 
wagons,  (here  are  facilities  for  refrigeration,  and  sometimes  the  milk 
is  also  iced  en  route.  Some  of  the  contracts  with  (he  buyers  require 
(he  use  of  wagons  with  springs  in  transporting  the  milk  to  the 
creamery. 

SII11'PIAT(J    STATIONS    OK    CREAMERIES. 
DESCB1PTION. 

At  each  point  from  which  milk  is  shipped  to  the  city  there  is  a 
building,  sometimes  known  as  a  shipping  station,  hut  more  frequently 
as  a  creamery.  Here  the  milk  is  received  from  the  farmers  and  pre- 
pared for  shipment.  Practically  no  milk  is  loaded  directly  from 
the  producer's  wagon  into  the  milk  car.  These  stations  are  located 
more  or  less  closely  together,  according  to  the  amount  of  dairying 
in  the  vicinity.  In  Orange  County,  the  town  of  Warwick  has  \'l 
stations.  In  Delaware  County,  Stamford  has  10  stations.  Towns 
with  4  to  (>  stations  are  frequent.  On  several  lines  of  railroad  the 
stations  are  at  least  within  5  miles  of  each  other,  and  stations  ~2  or  -> 
miles  apart  are  not  uncommon.  Most  of  the  stations  are  owned  by  the 
city  dealers,  but  a  few  are  cooperative  or  have  independent  owners. 
Where  the  stations  are  near  together  they  are  usually  owned  by  dif- 
ferent dealers,  and  there  is  sometimes  a  little  competition  for  the 
product-  of  the  neighboring  dairies  which  can  ship  to  one  as  well  as 
to  the  other. 

These  stations  vary  greatly  as  to  equipment.  The  most  ordinary 
have  merelv  a  tank  for  ice  water  and  cans,  with  a  small  boiler  to 
produce  hot  water  or  steam  for  washing  cans  and  other  utensils. 
The  more  elaborate  establishments  are  equipped  with  clarifier,  pas- 
teurizer, bottling  machine,  bottle  washer,  separator,  churn,  cream  vat. 
sterilizing  plant,  ice  crusher,  condensery,  and.  in  some  instances, 
repair  shop  for  mending  cans  and  bottle  boxes.  In  every  case  there 
is  an  ice  house  either  attached  to  the  creamery  or  located  very  near. 
Usually  a  railroad  side  track  runs  close  to  the  building  for  conve- 
nience in  loading.  In  some  instances  a  dwelling  house  is  connected 
with  the  creamery. 

The  variation  in  quality  of  the  equipment  in  the  creameries  is  very 
irreat.  In  some  of  the  poorer  creameries  the  tanks  and  floors  are  of 
wood;  and  even  where  the  attendant  is  very  careful  the  water-soaked 
and  partially  decayed  wood  offers  a  condition  far  from  ideal;  and 
where  there  is  considerable  carelessness  in  spilling  milk  and  no  pains 
is  taken  to  clear  up  the  neglected  corners  the  condition  becomes  very 
bad.  The  board  of  health  has  found  the  conditions  in  some  cases 
so  bad  that  it  has  revoked  the  corporation's  permit  to  sell  milk  in 
New  York  Citv.  At  the  other  extreme  are  the  creameries  of  the 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,    NKW    YORK,   PHILADELPHIA.  39 

large  corporations  with  a  fancy  trade  and  plenty  of  capital.  Here 
we  find  cement  floors,  tile  walls,  and  everything  bright  and  shining. 
Utensils,  vats,  and  tanks  are  sterili/ed  with  live  steam,  machinery  is 
thoroughly  cleaned,  while  plenty  of  water  is  conveyed  in  hose  to 
floors  and  walls.  The  floors  are  slightly  concave,  so  that  the  water 
quickly  drains  oil'  and  they  soon  become  dry. 

HANOI, I  N<;     MILK     AT    Till;    STATIONS. 

Ill  the  simplest  of  these  stations  the  milk  is  received  from  the 
farmer,  emptied  from  his  cans,  and  mixed  and  cooled  for  sending  to 
the  citv  in  the  4()-quart  cans.  The  cans  of  milk  are  set  in  tanks, 
which  are  usually  so  placed  that  the  top  is  level  with  the  floor  in 
order  to  save  lifting.  The  cans  are  placed  in  ice  water  and  the  milk 
is  occasionally  stirred,  so  that  it  will  cool  evenly  throughout.  The 
stirring  is  done  with  a  flat  disk  several  inches  in  diameter,  to  which 
a  handle  is  attached  at  right  angles  with  the  disk.  Raising  and 
lowering  the  disk  thoroughly  stirs  the  milk. 

In  the  more  pretentious  creameries  milk  is  clarified,  pasteurized, 
or  Mended,  according  to  the  kind  of  business  done.  The  bottled 
milk  of  the  citv  is  largely  put  up  at  these  creameries.  Several  of 
them  are  also  condensing  establishments.  Many  of  them  put  up 
pot  cheese,  and  the  large  city  demand  for  buttermilk  is  met  by 
churning  skim  milk.  The  surplus  is  regulated  at  the  creamery  as 
much  as  possible  rather  than  in  the  city.  Supplies  are  ordered  from 
dav  to  dav  by  telegraph  at  the  latest  moment  possible.  Any  sur- 
plus is  left  at  the  creamery  to  be  worked  up  into  butter  or  to  be 
condensed.  Many  of  these  creameries  have  separators,  by  means 
of  which  the  dealers'  supply  of  cream  is  secured.  The  State  has  a 
low  fat  standard  for  milk  ( :>  per  cent),  and  many  producers  feel 
that  sometimes  whole  milk  is  partially  skimmed  so  that  a  dealer 
can  get  quite  a  cream  supplv  by  bringing  his  milk  supply  down  to 
a  ->  per  cent  basis. 

The  higher  the  standing  of  the  dealer  the  better  the  condition  of 
his  creamerv.  Dealers  who  sell  to  others  to  sell  again  have  a  mini- 
mum of  responsibility,  and  the  condition  of  the  places  belonging  to 
them  does  not  average  so  good. 

It  is  estimated  by  Darlington  that  about  one-third  of  the  city  milk 
supply  is  sold  in  bottle:-.  Most  of  this  is  bottled  in  these  creameries. 
The  remainder — the  two-thirds — is  shipped  to  the  city  in  cans  to 
supply  the  large  customers,  like  hotels,  restaurants,  institutions,  and 
grocers,  also  a  few  peddlers. 

These  shipping  stations  are  not  only  subject  to  the  inspection  of 
the  city  board  of  health,  which  can  refuse  permits  to  city  dealers  if 
the  countrv  conditions  are  not  all  ri»-ht.  but  the  State  agricultural 


40  BUKEAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

department  has  direct  supervision  of  them  and  can  make  suggestions 
as  to  changes. 

The  empty  cans  come  hack  from  the  city  dirty,  and  are  washed  at 
these  creameries.  When  the  cans  have  stood  some  time  in  a  grocery 
store  or  near  a  kitchen  fire  their  condition  is  had,  and  this  negligence 
is  criticised  hy  health  authorities.  But  there  is  every  facility  at  the 
creamery  for  giving  them  a  thorough  cleansing. 

CARS  USED  FOR  TRANSPORTING  MILK. 

The  cars  used  in  transporting  milk  to  New  York  City  are  prac- 
tically the  same  over  the  whole  of  the  territory.  The  only  differences 
are  in  size  and  minor  details.  In  external  appearance  they  are  like 
ordinary  express  cars,  with  one  central  door  on  each  side.  In  a  few 
instances  there  are  end  doors.  The  word  "  Milk  "  is  painted  on  each 
side  of  the  car,  with  the  name  of  the  railroad  corporation.  The  entire 
space  inside  the  car  is  in  one  compartment.  Having  no  partitions, 
the  cars  can  easily  be  kept  clean  by  flushing  with  water.  This 
is  usually  done  daily  in  summer.  The  construction  of  the  cars  is 
similar  to  that  of  the  familiar  refrigerator  cars.  The  walls  are  dou- 
ble, and  there  is  a  trap  door  in  the  roof  for  loading  ice,  with  ventila- 
ting openings  in  the  sides  near  the  bottom.  Most  of  the  cars  are 
piped  for  steam  so  that  the  milk  can  be  kept  from  freezing  in  the 
winter.  These  cars  are  all  of  the,  time  under  the  direct  control  of 
the  railroads.  The  railroad  company  therefore  assumes  the  respon- 
sibility for  the  care  of  the  milk  en  route,  and  takes  entire  charge 
of  the  refrigeration  in  the  summer.  For  this  purpose  it  has  icing 
stations  on  long  runs,  where  the  cars  are  iced,  either  at  the  top  or  by 
placing  cakes  of  ice  among  the  milk  cans. 

Where  the  shipping  station  is  a  large  one,  a  car  is  placed  on  the 
railroad  siding  near  the  building,  and  the  men  employed  about  the 
creamery  load  the  cans  or  boxes  of  bottles.  When  the  milk  train 
arrives,  all  that  is  necessary  is  to  back  onto  the  siding  and  connect 
with  the  car.  In  the  case  of  small  creameries  the  milk  is  loaded 
while  the  train  waits.  Sometimes  the  work  is  merely  twirling  the 
cans  across  a  gangway  into  the  car  door.  In  other  cases  the  trainmen 
have  to  carry  the  cans  or  boxes  across  a  track.  Sometimes,  when  the 
station  stands  back  from  the  railroad  track,  there  is  a  loading  plat- 
form near  the  track,  connected  with  the  creamery  by  a  bridge,  and 
the  manager  has  the  cans  on  the  loading  platform  before  the  train 
arrives,  which  greatly  facilitates  the  work. 


MTLK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  41 

DESCRIPTION    OF    A    MILK    HOITK. 

The  following  details  of  a  (rip  on  a  milk  (rain  from  Bihghamton 


\ -J 


v-}- 


Ki<;.  I!.     M;i])  showing  the  source  of  New   York's  milk  supply. 

to  Albany  will  not  only  describe  that  particular  route,  but.  so  far  as 
it  is  typical,  will  throw  lio-ht  on  the  general  methods  practiced: 

The  train  leaves  Binghaniton  at  !).  1T>  a.  in.  with  three  empty  milk 
cars  and  two  passenger  coaches.     The   few   passengers  are    for   local 


42  BUREAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

points  not  far  distant  from  Binghamton.  Eleven  miles  out  the  first 
milk  is  taken.  40  cans  being  loaded  from  a  rather  dingy  looking 
creamery.  After  a  ride  of  4  miles  a  stop  is  made  at  a  station  where  13 
cases  of  bottled  milk  are  loaded.  After  3  miles  more,  we  come  to  a 
station  where  there  is  a  creamery  which  utilizes  all  the  milk  locally. 
Three  miles  farther  on  about  100  cases  of  bottled  milk  are  taken  on. 
A  mile  beyond,  at  Nineveh  Junction,  a  whole  car  which  has  come 
down  a  branch  road  is  attached  to  the  train.  Afton.  5  miles  beyond. 
is  reached  at  10/JO.  and  at  this  place  between  *>0  and  70  cans  art- 
loaded.  Six  miles  more  brings  us  to  Bainbridge,  where  another  car 
is  coupled  to  the  train,  near  a  bright,  white  creamery.  Some  of  the 
milk  for  this  creamery  is  hauled  from  farms  S  and  10  miles  distant. 
As  we  get  farther  down  the  grade  the  valley  broadens,  and  many 
thrifty  farms  are  seen.  Nine  miles  farther  yet.  after  being  on  the 
road  two  hours,  two  cars  are  picked  up:  .">  miles  more  and  another 
car  is  taken,  and  after  4  miles  still  another.  At  this  last  station 
nearly  two  carloads  are  shipped,  so  that  there  is  a  considerable 
amount  to  be  loaded  by  the  trainmen.  At  Oneonta  a  car  is  added, 
and  *>  miles  beyond  something  like  100  cases  of  bottles  are  loaded. 
The  next  five  stations  are  from  3  to  .">  miles  apart,  and  at  each  one  of 
these  a  considerable  quantity  of  milk  is  loaded,  in  one  case  105  cans. 
Gobleskill  is  reached  about  3  p.  in.,  where  a  car  is  coupled  to  the 
train,  which  waits  for  all  the  cars  to  be  iced:  this  is  done  bv  placing 
a  cake  of  ice  in  the  space  between  groups  of  four  cans  each.  A  few 
more  small  lots  of  milk  are  loaded  at  different  stations.  Albany, 
143  miles  from  Binghamton.  is  reached  at  4.40  p.  m..  seven  hours 
and  twenty-five1  minutes  from  the  start.  Here  the  cars  brought  in 
over  the  several  roads  are  made  up  into  a  long  train,  and  at  S.:>0  the 
train  is  rushing  at  high  speed  to  Xew  York  City. 

The  loading  of  the  milk  on  this  train  is  done  by  the  trainmen, 
and  the  record  of  the  shipments  is  kept  by  the  conductor,  just  as 
the  conductor  of  an  ordinary  freight  train  keeps  record  of  the 
numbers  on  the  cars,  waybills,  etc. 

FREKiHT    RATKS. 

Freight  rates  on  milk  to  Xew  York  City  are  based  on  a  zone  sys- 
tem recommended  by  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission,  and  are 
as  follows  on  40-quart  cans: 

\'\>  to  4<l  niiles_. 

Between   4<>  and   inn  miles 

P.et \vcen   inn  and  L'nn  mile-; 

L?nn  miles  and  ovei'__  .".'_» 

This  system  of  rale-  i>  followed  bv  all  of  the  roads,  the  only  appar- 
ent difference  being  in  the  case  of  the  New  York  Central  Railway, 
which  makes  one  rale  for  a  whole  division  for  those  dealer-  on  the  east 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA. 


43 


side  of  the  Hudson  River.  These  division  rates  have  a  relation  to  the 
rates  of  the  foregoing  table,  being  near  to  the  rate  of  the  zone  in  which 
the  most  distant  point  of  the  division  is  located.  This  system  of  the 
Central  Railway  makes  it  possible  for  a  shipper  on  one  division  to 
pay  more  than  one  on  another  division  living  the  same  distance  from 
the  city. 

The  railroads  seem  to  be  in  substantial  agreement  as  to  the  freight 
on  cream,  which,  with  but  few  exceptions,  is  18  cents  per  can  more 
than  the  freight  on  milk.  The  transportation  costs  no  more,  but  the 
extra  charge  is  justified  on  the  principle  defended  by  many  econo- 
mists, that  the  cost  of  an  article,  or  its  value,  is  a  proper  element  to 
consider  in  fixing  the  freight  charge. 

The  freight  charges  on  bottled  milk  and  cream  are  less  uniform 
than  on  the  same  commodities  in  bulk.  The  tendency  of  the  railroads 
is  to  advance  the  rate  on  the  bottled  goods.  In  several  instances  there 
has  been  an  advance  in  these  rates  since  the  publication  of  Bulletin 
No.  25  of  the  Division  of  Statistics  (190:2).  The  published  rates  of 
the  railroad  companies  do  not  have  any  common  unit.  For  instance, 
some  quote  rates  by  the  case,  which  may  contain  quarts  or  pints,  or  any- 
where from  10  to  24  bottles  to  the  case.  In  the  following  table  the 
computation  has  been  made  on  the  basis  of  the  quart;  when  the  milk 
or  cream  is  put  up  in  quart  bottles,  12  to  the  case  are  understood : 

Freii/lit  raffs  on  milk  and  cream  carried  into  New  York  (Jity. 


First  7,011  f 


Second  zoiu 


Third  zont 


Fourth  /.out 


Railroad. 


Erie 

West  Shore 

D.,L.&  W 

Lehigli  Valley 

Erie... 

West  Shore 

D.,  L.  &  W 

N.  Y.,  O.  &  W 

Lehigh  Valley 

N.  Y.,  N.  H.&H.. 

Erie 

West  Shore 

D.,  L.&  W  .. 


N.  Y.,  O.  &  W.. 

N.  Y.  C.,  mail)  line 

Erie 

West  Shore 

D.,  L.  &  W  .. 

N.  Y..  O.  &  W 

Lehigh  Valley 

N.  Y.  (' 

N.  Y.  ('.,  K.  W.  &  O.  Div 


40-quart  cans.  ;  Quart  bottles. 


Milk. 

Cream. 

Milk. 

Cream. 

Cents. 

Cents. 

Cents. 

Cents. 

23 

41 

0.80 

1  .  43 

;£{ 

41 

.77 

1.22 

x>:j 

41 

.81 

1.43 

23 

36 

.  S3 

26 

44 

.91 

1  .  54 

26 

44 

.85 

1.30 

2ti 

44 

.91 

1  .  54 

26 

44 

.91 

1.54 

25 

36 

.  S3 

25 

30 

.87 

1.05 

29 

47 

l.OJ 

1.64 

29 

47 

.  92 

1.  37 

29 

47 

l.(K) 

1.64 

29 

47 

1.01 

1.64 

29 

47 

1.02 

1.04 

32 

50 

1,12 

1.75 

32 

50 

1.00 

1.45 

:i2 

50 

1.11 

1  .  75 

32 

50 

1.12 

1.75 

32 

50 

1.12 

1.75 

32 

50 

1.12 

1.75 

1.  45 

44  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

Frcnjlit  rule*  nn  milk  and  cream  currie<l  into  \nr  York  fit)/ — f  ontimied. 


Zone. 

Railroad. 

40-qua 
Milk. 

•t  cans,      yuart  bottles. 
Cream.     Milk.     Cream. 

Putnam 

division  (most 

TVn/s- 

Centx. 
1.05 

:>:>  ]          w 

.  H7 

New  York  Central  (divisions  east 

remot 
Harlem 

<  point  54  miles.) 
division     i  most 

•S,            K 

.87 

1  .  :iri 

of  Hudson  River  i. 

remot 
Hudson 

'.  point  \:>~  miles), 
division  <  most 

:«»            411 

1.1  IT) 

1.40 

remote  point  14S  miles). 

Taking  the  2G-cent  zone  for  illustration,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
rate  per  quart  when  the  milk  is  in  cans  is  O.G5  cent:  when  it  is  in 
glass  bottles,  packed  in  substantial  wooden  cases  filled  with  crushed 
ice.  the  rate  is  about  O.i)  cent.  The  ratio  of  actual  weight  is  about 
2^  to  1. 

Most  of  the  roads  allow  a  discount  of  '20  per  cent  from  the  above 
rates  for  carload  lots:  hence  the  definition  of  a  carload  is  of  concern. 
The  common  case,  containing  a  do/en  quart  bottles,  when  iced  weighs 
ft")  pounds,  and  GOO  of  these  ordinarily  constitute  a  carload.  This 
is  7.200  quarts,  or  .">  1.000  pounds,  although  the  weight  is  constantly 
lessening  as  the  ice  melts.  The  Xew  York.  Ontario  and  Western 
Railroad  states  that  for  the  purpose  of  its  freight  tariff  a  carload 
must  consist  of  at  least  250  cans,  or  7.000  quarts  in  bottles.  This 
would  be  10.000  quarts  in  cans,  or  7.000  in  bottles.  The  Delaware. 
Lackawanna  and  AYestern  Railroad  defines  a  carload  as  consisting 
of  9.000  quarts  in  cans,  or  G.500  quarts  in  bottles. 

M1T.K    TRAINS. 
ITOW    RTX.    T1MK.     DTSTAXCK.    KTC. 

The  milk  cars  are  usually  run  in  milk  trains  entirely  distinct  from 
the  passenger  service.  In  some  instances,  however,  a  passenger 
car  is  attached  to  a  milk  train  during  the  portion  of  its  run  in 
which  it  is  picking  up  the  load  of  milk.  Tn  other  instance-,  on  some 
branch  roads,  the  milk  car  is  attached  to  a  regular  passenger  train, 
or  even  to  a  freight  train,  the  milk  cars  being  made  into  a  milk 
train  at  the  junction.  Exclusive  milk  trains  are  run  on  the  fastest 
time  of  any  trains  on  the  road,  and  are  drawn  by  the  strongest  and 
surest  locomotives. 

The  prevailing  manner  of  distributing  milk  in  the  city  calls  for 
the  arrival  of  the  train-  in  the  night,  generally  between  10  o'clock 
and  midnight.  We  have  prepared  a  table  showing  the  time  the 
milk  cars  or  trains  leave  some  of  the  most  remote  points,  the  distance 


MILK    SUPPLY    OK    liOSTON,    N  KVV    YORK,    PHILADELPHIA. 


45 


traveled,  and  the  time  on  the  road.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  these; 
trains  pick  up  milk  for  long  distances,  and  that  milk  produced 
near  by  readies  the  city  no  sooner  than  that  produced  :>()()  miles 
away.  The  morning's  milk  always  reaches  the  city  before  midnight, 
but.  there  are  places  where  the  (rains  stop  to  take  on  fresh  milk  as 
late  as  from  '2  to  (i  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

lioirhifi  tiiui'  milk-  Iniinx  Iciirc,  dinfancr  li'iii'dnl,  <nt<l  linir  nn  mini. 


Railroad. 
X   Y    O   <Sr  W 

Starting  point.               tanoe 

Milex 

Sidney.  N.  Y    .                               201 

Time         Time     j     Time 
leaves,      arrives,    on  road. 

<(.  in.          /i.  in.             li.    in. 
1<).:r>         KI.KI         11    :i"> 

[Central  Square,  N  .  Y   .                «  K 
Klmira.  X.  Y                                    :><>4 

7.  :.'.-)            10.50            15     2') 

s.  to          !»  :-cj         la   5:i 

I)     I     &  \V 

Syracuse.  X.  Y  2«7 

!MI5           10.5SJ           i:i     17 

lUtiea,  X.Y_  :        302 

!t.:*i         ]().:!(>  '•       i:i     (> 

[Richfield  Springs  311 

'.».  10         10.  :«i         i:i   ^(; 

NY     N  -  H   &  H 

Pittstield,  Mass                               lo.r 

/».  (//  . 
12  10  '      KI  12       10    a 

Hornellsville,  X.  Y       _                :«:>. 

r/.  (/). 

H.07             10   15            11       « 

Erie 

)>.lll. 

Port  .Tervis                                        W 

4  50 

Pino  Island  72 

4  :.'5 

Li-hitfh  Yallev    - 

Clockville                                          ;<*7 

S  01             10.  IJO            14     2(\ 

X   Y   Central 

[Masseiia  Springs  :i'.K 

7.00             11.00             Iti       0 

Ogclensburg                                   H'i','. 

11.  (H) 

\    Y     Sus   \-  W 

"Midrtletown,  N.  Y  ..                      IK 

l>.m. 

:ilo          Ki.:«)           7    ao 

Strdiidslmrir.  Pa    .                       lo:i 

2.4i;         lo.  :«•           7    44 

The  milk  trains  arrive  in  New  York  City  about  the  same  time — 
from  10  to  11  o'clock"  at  niidit.  There  are.  however,  several  places 
of  arrival — at  Harlem  River  (One  hundred  and  thirtieth  street),  at 
Llig'hbridg'e,  at  Thirtieth  street  and  Tenth  avenue;  but  the  great 
mass  of  the  milk  is  delivered  in  Xew  Jersey. 

At  the  railroad  terminals  there  are  no  special  arrangements  for  the 
milk  business  aside  from  the  covered  platform  to  be  found  at  all 
freight  stations.  The  different  dealers  are  on  hand  on  the  arrival  of 
(he  trains  to  get  their  several  supplies.  There  is  no  confusion,  prin- 
cipally for  the  reason  that  there  i>  not  a  large  number  of  small 
dealers  to  complicate  the  delivery.  Transportation  from  the  rail- 
roads is  done  chieilv  bv  larire  wagons  drawn  bv  three  or  four  horses. 


When  the  large  wagon:-  leave  the  railroad  stations  thev  are  driven 
to  the  headquarters  of  the  different   large  dealers,  where  the  load   i- 


46  BUKEAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

transferred  to  smaller  wagons  for  distribution  throughout  the,  city. 
The  city  milk  station  is  chiefly  a  combination  of  a  counting  room  and 
a  stable,  the  office  being  on  the  second  floor,  the  first  floor  being  de- 
voted to  space  for  wagons.  Some  of  these  places  have  a  small  refrig- 
erator for  keeping  a  little  surplus  milk,  and  occasionally  there  is  a 
churn  and  other  facilities  for  making  butter  of  inferior  quality  from 
sour  or  surplus  milk.  In  two  or  three  instances  large  dealers  have 
fitted  up  rooms  for  pasteurizing  and  bottling  milk  in  the  city. 
Where  these  large  dealers  retail  milk  from  a  store  it  is  entirely  sep- 
arated from  the  main  place  of  business. 

Speaking  in  a  general  way,  about  one-third  of  the  city  supply  is 
delivered  in  bottles  and  two-thirds  in  cans.  The  "  can  v  milk  goes 
to  institutions,  hotels,  restaurants,  and  grocery  stores.  There  are 
7.000  such  stores  in  the  Borough  of  Manhattan. 

HOW    THE    PRICE    IS    DETERMINED. 

Three  ways  are  in  vogue  for  determining  the  price  to  be  paid  the 
producers.  The  first  is  by  the  Xew  York  Milk  Exchange.  This  is 
an  organization,  nominally  of  representative  producers  and  dealers, 
for  the  purpose  of  studying  the  situation  from  the  standpoint  of 
each  and  fixing  a  price,  after  a  canvass  of  the  supply,  demand,  and 
cost  of  production.  The  exchange  has  17  directors,  who  determine 
the  price  of  milk  when  conditions  seem  to  warrant  a  change  from 
the  prevailing  price.  Sometimes  the  price  is  changed  three  times  a 
month,  although  so  frequent  changes  are  not  common.  No  definite 
advance  contracts  or  prices  are  made  by  the  exchange.  The  price 
fixed  upon  to-day  is  the  price  until  another  is  determined  upon.  Of 
the  seventeen  directors,  the  secretary  reports  that  more  than  one- 
third  a iv  producers.  One  of  the  largest  dealers  stated  that  t\vo  of 
the  directors  were  farmers,  while  others  are  both  producers  and 
shippers.  But  the  mass  of  the  producers  resent  the  claim  that  they 
have  any  representation  in  fixing  the  price.  About  three-fourths 
of  the  Xew  York  milk  is  bought  on  the  exchange  basis.  The  net 
price  to  the  farmers  is  the  exchange  price,  less  three  items — the  /one 
freight  rate.  f>  cents  per  can  as  a  ferriage  charge  on  such  milk  as  is 
landed  in  Xew  .Jersey,  and  a  "  station  charge  "  of  10  cents  per  can. 
The  exchange  price  in  February.  1905,  was  £1.01  per  can.  In  the 
second  zone  there  would  be  deducted  '2(\  cents  freight.  .">  cents  fer- 
riage, and  10  cents  station  charge.  This  would  make  the  net  price 
to  the  farmer  Si. -JO.  or  8  cents  per  quart.  The  station  charge  varies 
somewhat  with  the  competition  between  different  shippers  when  their 
creameries  are  located  near  each  other. 

Much  milk  which  is  paid  for  on  the  exchange  basis  is  actually 
bought  by  the  100  pounds.  The  milk  is  weighed  when  delivered 


MILK  SUPPLY  OF  BOSTON,  XKW  YORK,  PUILADKLPI 1 1  A.     47 

by  the  farmer  at  the  shipping  station  and  then  reduced  to  cans  at 
S(>  pounds  to  the  can.  In  handling  milk  in  large  quantities  the  use 
of  the  words  "can  "  and  "quart  "  as  units  in  price  making  seems  to 
be  decreasing  and  the  system  of  paying  by  the  100  pounds  is 
increasing. 

The  second  way  of  paying  for  milk  is  that  adopted  by  the  largest 
purchasers,  who  buy  for  condensing  as  well  as  for  direct  sale,  and 
who  condense  much  of  their  surplus  in  seasons  when  there  is  an 
abundant  production.  These  purchasers  buy  by  the  100  .pounds, 
but  make  a  price  for  a  period  of  six  month-  in  advance.  It  is 
claimed  that  the  exchange  price  is  influential  as  a  basis  in  fixing 
this  scale  of  prices,  although  the  two  do  not  always  agree.  The 
price  paid  per  100  pounds  is  a  net  price  at  the  shipping  station, 
"  condensery,"  or  creamery. 

The  third  wav  of  buving  is  by  the  100  pounds  on  the  basis  of  the 
fat  in  the  milk.  Samples  are  taken  daily  and  tested.  The  agreed 
pi-ice  is  for  milk  testing  f.-J  per  cent,  and  '2  cents  additional  is  paid 
for  each  one-tenth  of  1  per  cent  of  fat. 

MILK    SANITATION. 

In  handling  an  article  as  susceptible  to  contamination  and  dete- 
rioration as  milk,  the  question  of  sanitation  is  important.  The  prob- 
lem is  also  difficult,  for  it  must  deal  with  the  thousands  of  producers. 
then  with  the  conditions  at  the  shipping  stations,  next  with  the 
manner  of  transportation,  and  finally  with  the  manner  of  retailing  in 
the  citv.  Many  of  the  smaller  groceries  have  no  facilities  for  keeping 
milk  cool  in  the  summer,  and  they  give  the  city  board  of  health  much 
trouble.  In  one  section  it  is  stated  that,  "out  of  a  total  of  •2.458 
stores  visited,  only  451  were  found  where  the  milk  was  properly 
cooled  and  where  there  was  no  communication  with  living  rooms." 

The  State  agricultural  department  has  direct  supervision  over  the 
-•anitary  conditions  in  the  country,  especially  at  the  shipping  stations. 
Where  the  places  are  in  bad  condition,  the  department  can  require 
them  to  be  cleaned  up.  The  city  board  of  health  makes  occasional 
investigations  of  the  country  condition.-,  and  if  they  are  insanitary 
the  board  refuses  permits  to  sell  milk  in  the  city  from  such  place-.  In 
this  way  a  local  board  of  officers  can  indirectly  exercise  supervision 
over  matters  beyond  its  jurisdiction. 


PART  III.— THE  MILK  SUPPLY  OF  PHILADELPHIA. 

AMOUNT SOURCES CARS. 

The  milk  supply  of  Philadelphia  for  the  year  1!)03  was  111,:M>2,000 
quarts.     This  was  received  from  the  following  sources: 

Quarts. 

Pennsylvania    Railroad   _  47,084,000 

Reading  Railroad  : 

Near    by---  -  85, :  {54.  (MM) 

Distant    .  :!.  4SS,  000 

MS.  X42,  0(M) 

Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad--  7.015,000 

Lehitfli   Valley   Railroad-.  10.  201.00O 

Wagons     ( estimated )__  7.200.000 


Total  _  111.242.000 

For  six  years  the  annual  rate  of  increase  has  varied  from  1,000,000 
to  0,000,000  quarts  and  averaged  nearly  3,000,000  quarts,  rising  from 
im,!W.).00()  to  111,^4-2,000. 

Stating  the  receipts  for  1!KK>  by  percentages  and  rearranging  the 
order  of  the  above  table,  we  have  the  following  results: 

Tcr  cent. 

Pennsylvania     Railroad__  .  4:5.2 

Reading   Railroad    (near   by  I  -   :t1.5 

Baltimore  and  Ohio   Railroad.  <'>.."> 


iilk_-  .    SI.O 

<;. :; 

Total   near-by  milk__  _  S7.  •"> 

Leliitfh   Valley   Railroad--  0.  o 

Reading  Railroad    (distant)  _  .">.  (> 

-   12.  r, 

Total    .  00.0 

From  the  above  table  it  will  be  seen  that  ST  per  cent  of  the  city's 
milk  supply  comes  from  comparatively  near-by  sources,  chiefly  in 
Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey,  and  some  in  Delaware.  About  0  pel- 
cent  is  estimated  to  be  brought  into  the  city  in  wagons  from  dairies 
near  the  city  or  situated  within  the  territorial  limits  of  the  mnnici- 
48 


MTLK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,  NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA. 


49 


palitv.  Five  thousand  cows  arc  reported  within  the  city  limits. 
The  "  wagon  milk  "  is  gradually  growing  less  as  the  value  of  land 
near  the  city  increases  and  becomes  less  available  for  dairying.  Of 
the  !>.'5  per  cent  of  the  city  milk  which  is  transported  to  the  city  by 
railroad  HI  per  cent  comes  from  within  (>()  miles.  This  milk  is  trans- 
ported in  ordinary  baggage  and  express  cars.  No  money  is  expended 
in  fitting  them  up  for  milk  cars;  in  fact,  they  are  not  even  labeled. 
The  Pennsylvania  Railroad  cars  have  two  doors  on  each  side,  and 
the  Reading  Railroad  cars  have  three.  Most  of  the  cars  are  piped 
for  heating.  A  few  have  old-fashioned  stoves,  but  none  have  any 
facilities  for  refrigeration.  The  cars  are  for  the  most  part  clean, 
but  in  some  instances  more  attention  to  cleanliness  on  the  part  of  the 
railroad  companies  would  seem  desirable.  The  cars  are  usually 
run  in  connection  with  passenger  trains.  In  some  instances  the  milk 


cars  start  with  passenger  trains,  but  on  reaching  the  junctions  they 
are  made  up  into  a  special  milk  train.  In  such  cases  there1  is  usually 
no  milk  taken  on  between  the  junction  and  the  city. 

As  the  milk  is  transported  in  baggage  cars  on  passenger  trains, 
the  transportation  is  closely  connected  with  the  passenger  depart- 
ment of  the  railroads,  and  on  the  Pennsylvania  system  the  business 
is  entirely  in  charge  of  the  latter  department. 

TIIK  CANS. 

Fully  DO  per  cent  of  the  cans  used  in  the  business  are  owned  by 
the  farmers.  Forty-quart  cans  are  used  for  the  most  part,  although 
there  are  some  "  30's  "  and  a  few  "  -JO's."  The  cans  vary  much  in 
shape,  some  being  much  taller  than  others  of  the  same  capacity. 


50  BUREAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

Many  fanners  paint  their  cans  to  assist  in  their  preservation.  A 
pile,  of  cans  at  a  large  railroad  station  in  Philadelphia  presents  less 
uniformity  than  in  Boston  or  New  York,  as  there  are  cans  of  various 
shape's,  sixes,  and  ages;  some  arc  quite  rusty  and  have  the  paint  nearly 
all  worn  on".  Sometimes  the  cans  are  kept  in  service  longer  than 
they  should  be;  the  covers  especially  become  battered  and  otherwise 
out  of  repair,  and  some  were  found  to  be  in  an  insanitary  condition. 

KRKHJIIT   RATES,    AND    MOW    PAID. 

The  farmers  sell  their  milk,  delivered  in  Philadelphia,  at  a  definite 
price.  Payment  for  transportation  is  made  by  a  system  of  tickets, 
printed  for  convenience  on  common  shipping  tags.  These  tags  are 
attached  to  the  cans,  which  are  not  supposed  to  get  on  the  train  with- 
out tickets  any  more  than  are  passengers.  When  the  cans  are  loaded 
the  baggage  master  goes  through  the  car  and  takes  up  the  tickets 
after  the  manner  of  the  conductor,  the  difference  being  that  the 
tickets  are  taken  up  by  detaching  the  ticket  portion  of  the  tag  on  a 
perforated  line.  The  tickets,  each  good  for  the  transportation  of 
a.  20-quart  can,  are  sold  in  bunches  of  20  for  $1.50,  $2,  or  $3,  de- 
pending on  whether  the  milk  has  to  be  transferred  at  a  junction. 
Other  tickets  are  sold  for  30-quart  and  40-quart  cans,  although  two 
20-quart  tickets  will  be  taken  for  transporting  a  40-quart  can. 
Any  farmer  can  buy  a  bunch  of  tickets  and  put  his  milk  on  any 
milk  car.  By  this  system  no  special  privileges  are  shown  to  any- 
one, and  even  the  smallest  producer  can  ship  milk  to  the  city 
without  any  inconvenience  and  on  as  good  terms  and  conditions  as 
the  largest  shipper.  In  local  language,  rates  are  sometimes  spoken 
of  as  a  $2  rate  or  a  $3  rate,  according  to  the  price  of  20  tickets, 
but  in  order  that  the  rate  may  be  understood  by  those  in  other  places 
it  is  placed  on  a  40-quart  can  basis.  Twenty  tickets  for  20-quart 
cans  sold  for  $1.50  is  at  the  rate  of  7i  cents  per  can,  or  15  cents  per 
40-quart  can.  Fifteen  cents  will  pay  for  transportation  of  40  quarts 
of  milk  on  the  Pennsylvania  division  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
from  all  points  less  than  <>0  miles  from  the  city,  where  the  cans  are  not 
transferred  at  junction  points:  in  this  case1  5  cents  extra  is  charged. 
The  same  price  is  charged  on  the  Philadelphia,  Baltimore  and  Wash- 
ington division,  from  all  points  less  than  30  miles;  on  the  United 
Railroads  of  New  Jersey  division,  from  Bristol,  Langhorne  (32.3 
miles),  Burlington.  N.  J.,  Mount  Holly,  N.  J.  (19.1  miles),  and  inter- 
mediate points;  on  the  West  Jersey  and  Seashore  division,  from  all 
points  (the  extremes  from  which  milk  is  shipped  are  38  and  51  miles)  ; 
on  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio,  from  all  points  from  which  milk  is 
shipped,  none  being  over  43  miles;  on  the  Philadelphia  and  Heading, 
from  points  as  far  out  as  Newtown  (2C>.3  miles).  Tvushland  (2(>  miles). 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,  NKW    YORK,   PI  FI LADKLPITIA.  51 

North  Wales  (22.5  milt's).  Valley  Forge  (21  miles):  and  on  th'.- 
Philadelphia  and  Reading,  over  Baltimore  and  ()hio.  less  than  SO 
miles. 

Twenty  cents  will  pay  for  transportation  of  10  quarts  of  milk 
on  the  Pennsylvania  division  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  from 
points  within  00  miles  where  there  is  a  transfer:  on  the  Philadelphia. 
Baltimore  and  Washington  division,  from  points  between  .">0  and  50 
miles;  on  the  I'nited  Railroads  of  New  Jersey  division,  from  all 
points  from  which  milk  is  shipped  beyond  those  in  l.Vcent  class  above: 
on  the  Philadelphia  and  Reading,  from  all  points  from  which  milk  is 
shipped  beyond  those  in  the  15-cent  class  above  (except  for  long  dis- 
tance as  shown  below).  Twenty-five  cents  will  pay  for  transportation 
of  40  quarts  of  milk  on  the  Philadelphia.  Baltimore  and  Washington 
division  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  for  distances  between  50  and 
7.")  miles,  but  little  milk  is  shipped  from  these  distances.  The  same 
statement  will  apply  to  shipments  between  00  and  DO  miles  on  the 
Pennsylvania  division.  The  rate  is  also  25  cents  between  Ilights- 
town  and  Lewiston.  N.  J..  but  this  is  a  20-cent  rate  plus  5  cents  for 
transfer. 

The  rate4  for  cream  is  double  the  rate  for  milk.  Two  milk  tickets 
are  required  on  a  cream  can. 

Three  and  a  half  million  quarts,  or  about  o.O  per  cent  of  the  city 
supply,  comes  long  distances  over  the  Philadelphia  and  Reading 
road.  This  milk  dispatch  consists  of  three  or  four  cars  which  run 
on  a  fast  freight  without  refrigeration  facilities.  The  milk  is  wav- 
billed  the  same  as  other  freight,  and  the  rates  are:  On  milk  from 
Lebanon  Valley  and  Shippensburg.  respectively,  for  -20  quarts.  20  and 
21  cents:  for  40  quarts.  .'>0  and  o2  cents:  on  cream.  20  quarts.  •'>()  and 
:',2.',  cents:  40  quarts.  50  and  55  cents. 

Ten  million  quarts,  or  about  '.)  per  cent  of  the  supply,  is  received 
from  New  ^  ork  State  from  about  ten  shipping  stations.  These  sta- 
tions are  owned  by  seven  Philadelphia  dealers.  This  milk  comes  on 
the  Lehigh  Valley  road  with  the  train  for  New  York  City  to  Bethle- 
hem, where  the  train  is  divided,  part  going  to  New  York  and  the  re<t 
to  Philadelphia.  The  most  remote  car  start-  from  Fairhaven.  on 
Lake  Ontario.  :>5.">  miles  from  Philadelphia.  This  milk  come-  in 
the  usual  type  of  New  York  milk  cars,  provided  \vitlt  refrigeration 
facilities  in  the  summer. 

TI.MI:  OF  STARTING — ARIMVAL. 

The  near-by  railroad  milk  (about  Si  per  cent  of  the  whole)  starts 
from  the  country  at  the  terminal  point-  of  the  several  branches  nr 
divisions  from  5.. '50  to  O.:>0  o'clock-  in  the  morning  and  arrives  at  the 
milk  stations  in  the  cit  v  at  from  7  to  !>  o'clock,  much  of  it  be  in  12'  on  the 


52  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

road  only  two  hours,  and  some  even  less.  This  short  run  accounts 
for  the  lack  of  special  cars  and  refrigerating  facilities.  The  shippers 
and  railroads  claim  that  if  the  milk  is  properly  cooled  by  the  pro- 
ducer and  then  promptly  put  on  ice  by  the  dealer  in  the  city  it  can 
not  suffer  deterioration  during  the  short  time,  it  is  in  transportation. 

The  long-distance  railroad  milk  reaches  the  city  about  midnight. 
The  Philadelphia  and  Heading  train  leaves  for  the  city  early  in  the 
afternoon.  The  car  which  starts  from  Fairhaven,  N.  Y.,  leaves  at 
0.30  in  the  morning. 

The  milk  which  arrives  in  the  forenoon  is  taken  to  the  milk  depots 
of  the  dealers  for  bottling,  if  to  be  sold  in  bottles,  and  all  is  put  on 
ice  for  delivery  the  next  morning.  The  long-distance  milk  is  taken 
from  the  cars  for  more  speedy  delivery  the  same  morning.  The 
trains  which  collect  milk  from  near-by  as  well  as  distant  stations 
take  both  morning  milk  and  milk  of  the  previous  evening.  Milk 
produced  over  300  miles  from  the  city  and  that  produced  within  -20 
miles  is  delivered  to  the  consumer  at  the  same  time.  One  large 
dealer  who  has  both  near-by  and  distant  milk  claims  that  the  milk 
coining  '200  and  300  miles  reaches  the  city  in  as  good  condition  as 
milk  produced  nearer,  for  the  reason  that  it  has  thorough  refrigera- 
tion in  transit,  and  extra  precaution  is  taken  in  its  production  and 
preparation  for  transportation. 

The  milk  business  in  which  Philadelphia  is  concerned  has  practi- 
cally no  wholesalers:  that  is,  there  is  practically  no  milk  sold  by 
dealers  to  be  sold  again,  except  in  the  case  of  a  few  grocers.  All 
dealers,  except  grocers  and  provision  storekeepers  who  handle  milk, 
buy  of  the  farmers  direct  and  then  go  to  the  train  for  their  supplies 
each  forenoon  as  soon  as  the  train  is  due.  The  nearest  approach  to  a 
middleman  is  a  broker  or  agent  at  some  stations.  Sometimes,  if  a 
farmer  wants  to  take  up  the  milk-shipping  business  and  ha^  no 
customer,  he  consigns  his  supply  to  this  broker,  who  disposes  of  the 
product  to  the  best  advantage,  usually  on  the  platform  at  the  rail- 
road: he  has  no  teams,  cans,  or  storage  facilities.  When  the  smaller 
dealers  occasionally  want  a  little  extra  milk,  they  can  get  it  of  this 
broker. 

THE   PIIILADFJJ'IIIA    MILK    DKI'OTS. 

Most  of  the  Philadelphia  milk  is  received  at  three  railroad  stations, 
one  across  the  river  in  Cam  den  and  two  in  the  city.  At  each  of  the 
city  stations — Thirty-first  and  Chestnut  streets  and  Third  and  Berk 
streets — there  is  a  long  shed  with  platforms  where  the  milk  is  unloaded 
and  the  cars  again  filled  with  empty  cans,  and  where  the  dealers 
handle  their  milk.  Wagons  of  every  conceivable  style  and  condition 
as  regards  paint  and  cleanliness  can  be  found  standing  at  the  plat- 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  53 

forms  of  those  stations.  The  greater  part  of  these  have  canopy  tops. 
Many  are  covered  with  signs  and  advertisements.  The  word 
"Alderney  "  is  popular  for  advertising  milk  in  Philadelphia. 

The  scene  is  decidedly  animated  at  these  stations  when  a  train  is  in. 
Flitting  among  the  men  and  cans  is  an  occasional  officer  of  the  city 
health  department  or  an  agent  of  the  dealers'  association  taking  sam- 
ples, the  former  for  the  enforcement  of  the  law  and  the  latter  for  the 
information  and  protection  of  the  dealers  who  cooperate  in  this  work. 
The  inspector  has  a  utensil  which  stirs  the  milk  by  means  of  a  broad 
flange  and  takes  a  sample  at  the  same  time. 

THE    CAMDEN     MILK    DEPOT. 

At  Camden,  N.  J.,  28.300,000  quarts  of  milk  were  received  in  1003. 
Of  this  amount.  3.400.000  quarts  were  for  Camden  and  the  remainder 
for  Philadelphia.  The  statistics  relating  to  Philadelphia  are  exclu- 
sively for  the  municipality  and  do  not  include  suburban  territory. 
The  freight  rate  on  the  New  Jersey  milk  is  to  Philadelphia,  which  is 
reached  by  ferry  across  the  Delaware  River  from  Camden.  The  milk 
is  delivered  to  the  dealers  at  Camden.  but  they  are  given  free  tickets 
across  the  ferry,  which  is  controlled  by  the  railroad  company.  The 
number  of  milk  teams  crossing  the  ferry  in  1003  was  32.207  one-horse. 
8.455  two-horse,  and  1.331  three-horse  or  four-horse — a  total  of  42,083, 
and  a  daily  average  of  115.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  one-horse 
wagons  are  in  the  majority.  This  also  indicates  the  proportion  of 
small  dealers  in  the  business,  all  of  whom  buy  direct  from  the  farm- 
ers. The  cars  come  in  mostly  on  one  track,  parallel  with  the  tracks 
in  the  passenger  station,  and  on  one  side  of  the  station  building.  The 
milk-car  track  has  a  shed  of  its  own.  the  cars  running  in  on  one  side, 
while  the  wagons  back  up  on  the  other.  The  shed  is  500  feet  long, 
and.  during  the  busiest  day  of  the  summer  of  1004,  100.000  quarts 
were  handled.  The  daily  number  of  cars  is  about  K>. 

The  conditions  described  at  Camden  are  similar  to  those  at  the 
railway  station  in  the  city  except  that  the  latter  are  not  so  near  the 
passenger  depot  and  the  milk  cars  can  not  be  removed  from  the  pas- 
senger trains  quite  so  conveniently. 

KECE1YIX<;    STATIONS    COMPARED    WITH    THOSE    OF    BOSTON. 

The  Boston  milk-receiving  stations  are  situated  on  spur  tracks  of 
the  railroads,  under  control  by  ownership  or  lease  of  the  milk  compa- 
nies, and  they  include  large  buildings,  with  executive  and  business 
offices  as  well  as  an  abundance  of  facilities  for  handling  milk  at  whole- 
sale and  retail,  including  mixers,  refrigerators,  storage  tanks,  butter- 
making  outfit,  bottling  machinery,  etc.  In  some  cases  the  mixin.tr 


54  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

lank  is  placed  in  the  car  and  the  milk  poured  into  it  and  pumped  to 
coolers  and  refrigerator  tanks  on  an  upper  floor,  thus  economizing 
labor  to  a  great  extent. 

At  Philadelphia  the  method  is  quite  different.  At  the  railroads 
there  is  no  outlay  for  handling  milk  except  the  sidetrack  with  a  shed 
overhead,  as  in  the  case  of  any  freight  track.  Here  the  cars  are 
switched,  each  car  having  milk  possibly  for  a  score  of  different 
dealers.  To  these  sheds  come  all  the  milk  peddlers  of  the  citv  in 
every  conceivable  style  of  vehicle.  There  is  a  busy  time  unloading 
these  cars  and  soiling  out  each  dealer's  milk,  getting  it  on  his  wagon, 
and  loading  into  the  cars  the  empty  cans.  This  work'  is  supervised 
by  an  oflicial  of  the  railroad,  who  has  a  gang  of  men  under  him 
to  help  in  the  work.  Some  of  the  largest  dealers  (reported  to 
handle  as  high  as  -J  1.000  quarts  per  day)  are  there  with  their  three- 
horse  wagons,  which  hold  100  40-quart  cans  each.  The  small  dealer 
who  handles  only  two  cans  is  also  on  hand  with  his  small  delivery 
wagon.  The  Philadelphia  system  is  extremely  democratic.  The 
smallest  has  equal  privileges  with  the  largest. 

I'LACKS    OF    Till:    I)KAl,Ki;s. 

While  the  Philadelphia  system  requires  that  all  but  the  very  small- 
est dealers  have  a  place  of  business  for  mixing,  bottling,  and  stor- 
ing milk,  in  New  York  much  of  the  bottled  milk  for  the  family 
trade  is  bottled  in  the  country,  and  a  dealer  can  do  a  large  busi- 
ness with  no  other  city  facilities  than  a  stable  and  a  counting 
room,  the  large  loads  from  the  railroads  being  shifted  to  the 
smaller  delivery  wagons  in  the  stables  without  opening  can  or  bot- 
tle. In  Philadelphia,  after  the  dealer  has  hauled  his  day's  supply 
from  the  railroad  to  his  place  of  business,  his  day's  work  is  only  just 
commenced.  Then  begins  the  mixing,  cooling,  bottling,  icing,  and 
loading  for  the  next  morning's  delivery.  These  Philadelphia  milk 
depots,  scattered  all  over  the  city,  present  a  great  variety  of  condi- 
tions and  keep  the  board  of  health  busy  with  inspections;  even  then 
1  he  conditions  are  far  from  ideal.  There  are  some  large  dealers, 
veterans  in  the  bu>ine».  who  have  establishments  which  are  all  that 
could  be  required,  while  others  are  far  from  perfect. 

The  writer  visited  a  milk  depot  fitted  up  in  the  basement  of  a  resi- 
dence. The  milk  was  unloaded  from  a  three-horse  wagon  onto  the 
sidewalk,  from  which  it  was  lowered  to  the  basement  by  a  small  ele- 
vator. In  the  basement  were  all  the  appliances  for  mixing,  bottling, 
and  icing  the  milk  and  cream.  The  basement  floor  was  of  cement 
and  well  drained,  and  the  premises  clean.  When  the  milk  had  been 
transferred  from  the  wagon  to  the  cellar,  the  sidewalk  was  scrubbed 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  55 

with  soap  and  hot  water.  In  a  rear  room  was  a  separator  and  churn 
for  working  up  any  surplus.  The  front  room  on  the  street  floor  was 
fitted  ii})  for  a  retail  trade  in  milk  and  cream.  The  other-  portion  of 
the  building  was  used  l>y  the  family.  Here  for  the  first  time  the 
writer  saw  quarter-pint  bottles  of  cream,  which  retail  for  7  cents, 
and  seem  to  be  in  much  favor  in  that  locality.  Another  dealer's 
place  of  business  occupied  an  entire  building.  Tt  was  a  large  estab- 
lishment fitted  with  a  wide  range  of  machinery — pasteurizer,  churn, 
separator,  bottler,  bottle  washer,  and  artificial-ice  plant;  but  the 
place  had  a  dingy  appearance,  and  although  the  Moors  were  of 
cement,  there  was  much  woodwork  which  was  badly  watersoaked  and 
somewhat  musty. 

CANS   IX   RELATION   TO   PRICKS. 

Comparison  of  the  prices  received  for  milk  by  producers  supply- 
ing different  markets  is  difficult  because  of  the  varying  conditions. 
For  example,  the  producers  supplying  the  Philadelphia  market  not 
only  pay  the  freight  directly  by  a  ticket  on  each  can.  as  explained 
elsewhere,  but  also  furnish  the  cans  in  which  the  milk  is  transported 
to  the  city.  Consequently,  to  get  at  the  net  returns  received  by  the 
farmers  supplying  the  Philadelphia  market  the  cost  of  the  freight 
and  the  wear  and  tear  on  the  cans  must  be  deducted.  Fn  the  case 
of  the  Boston  supply,  all  cans  are  furnished  by  the  wholesalers,  and 
in  the  case  of  the  New  York  supply  the  fanners'  cans  are  used  only 
for  taking  the  milk  from  the  farm  to  the  railroad  shipping  station, 
being  all  the  time  under  the  personal  care  of  the  fanner  or  his  agent. 
But  in  the  Philadelphia  milk  supply  the  fanners'  cans  are  loaded 
on  the  cars,  go  to  the  city,  are  hauled  from  the  railroad  station  to 
the  dealer's  place  of  business,  and  then  go  back  over  the  route  again. 
Thus  these  cans  are  subjected  to  destructive  wear,  and  the  expense 
of  maintaining  cans  in  a  large  dairy  must  be  considerable.  It  is 
this  fact  of  the  individual  ownership  of  cans  that  leads  to  less  uni- 
formity in  si/e  and  shape  than  in  other  places,  and  To  the  use  in  some 
instances  of  cans  that  are  badly  worn  and  quite  rusty,  while  some 
of  the  covers  are  so  dilapidated  that  perfect  cleaning  is  impossible. 

There1  lias  been  some  discussion  between  the  producers  and  deal- 
ers as  to  the  return  of  the  cans  in  a  clean  condition,  and  the  pro- 
ducers have  at  times  attempted  to  secure  legislation  regarding  this. 
The  contention  of  the  dealers  is  that  the  ordinary  rules  of  business, 
applicable  to  all  products,  require  the  <eller  of  any  product  to  fur- 
nish a  suitable  package  for  its  transportation.  Tn  some  instances 
the  dealers  rinse  the  cans  before  returning  them.  The  writer  has 
.seen  cans  rinsed  at  the  railroad  platform,  the  rinsings  from  one  can 
being  turned  into  a  second,  and  so  on  through  the  whole  number  in 
the  custody  of  the  dealer. 


50  BUREAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

.SHIPPING   TAGS. 

The  shipping  tags  on  the  milk  cans  arc  all  arranged  so  that  the 
night's  and  morning's  milk  may  be  distinguished.  The  tag  can  be 
divided  at  a  perforated  line  and  the  part  remaining  on  the  can 
shows  the  age  of  the  milk,  while  the  other  pcrtion  can  go  to  book- 
keeper oi-  checking  clerk,  as  desired. 

THE    PHILADELPHIA    MILK   EXCHANGE. 

The  Philadelphia  Milk  Exchange  is  an  incorporated  organization 
of  dealers  which  handles  the  greater  part  of  the  milk  received  and 
sold  in  the  city.  These  dealers  consider  matters  of  mutual  interest. 
Such  topics  as  enforcement  of  laws,  insurance,  stray  cans,  hours  of 
Sunday  work.  etc..  are  discussed.  Once  a  month  the  members  meet 
to  consider  the  price  of  milk  for  the  coining  month.  After  noting 
the  market  conditions,  they  determine  what  is  a  fair  price,  endeavor- 
ing to  do  justice  to  all  concerned,  but  looking  at  matters,  of  course, 
from  the  dealer's  standpoint.  The  price  decided  upon  by  the  asso- 
ciation is  then  paid  to  farmers  supplying  the  milk.  A  representa- 
tive of  the  producers'  association  has  met  with  the.  exchange  on  a 
few  occasions  to  fix  the  price,  but  the  conference  resulted  in  a  failure 
to  agree,  and  since  then  the  exchange  has  fixed  its  own  price.  There 
have  been  some  attempts  at  consolidation  of  the  larger  concerns  in 
accordance  with  the  spirit  of  the  times,  but  they  have  never  suc- 
ceeded, largely  on  account  of  the  unpopularity  of  "  trusts." 

BOTTLING    AND    STORING    DEPOTS. 

As  already  stated,  the  milk  arrives  in  the  city  at  S  to  0.30  in  the 
morning,  as  a  rule,  and  large  customers,  who  buy  by  the  can.  are  fre- 
quently supplied  at  once,  but  most  of  the  milk  is  carried  to  the  place 
of  business  of  the  dealer,  where  it  is  bottled  and.  in  the  summer, 
placed  on  ice  until  the  next  morning.  One  estimate  is  that  probably 
75  per  cent  of  the  milk  for  the  family  trade  is  bottled.  This  milk 
is  delivered  at  from  •>  to  7  o'clock  in  the  morning.  On  the  second  trip 
of  the  dealers  a  little  "  dipped  "  milk  is  sold  to  families  who  call  for 
extra  milk. 

With  such  a  large  number  of  dealers  of  all  nationalities  and  con- 
ditions the  sanitary  conditions  in  the  bottling  depots  are  naturally 
varied,  but  the  board  of  health  makes  a  systematic  inspection  of  these 
places,  and  where  the  conditions  are  too  bad  and  the  dealers  are  per- 
sistent in  their  neglect  to  make  improvements  the  board  puts  a  stop 
to  tin-  business.  The  better  class  of  dealers,  who  have  more  capital 
and  larger  interests  at  stake  and  a  good  reputation  to  maintain,  vol- 
untarily keep  their  establishments  up  to  a  high  sanitary  state:  they 
consider  this  necessarv  to  success  in  their  business. 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  57 

RILES   FOR  PUOWCKKS. 

There  arc  no  general  rules  for  all  the  farmers  as  to  the  care  of  the 
milk.  This  is  largely  a  personal  matter  with  each  dealer.  Those 
who  have  a  fine,  class  of  trade  for  a  good  qualit"  of  milk  are  compelled 
to  be  particular  with  the  producers  if  they  are  to  hold  their  trade. 

Below  are  copies  of  two  circulars  sent  out  by  dealers  to  their  pro- 
ducers : 

PlKKCTIOXS     FOR    THK    C'AKK    OF    Mll.h 

Remove  the  milk  of  every  <-o\v  from  the  dairy  at  once  to  a  clean,  dry  room, 
where  the  air  is  pure  and  sweet.  Do  not  allow  cans  to  remain  in  the  stabler 
while  they  are  being  tilled.  Strain  the  milk  through  a  metal  gauze  and  a 
flannel  cloth. 

AEKATK    AM)    COOL    THE    MILK     AS    SOO.N     AS    STRAINED. 

The  rapid  aeration  and  cooling  of  milk  are  matters  of  great  importance. 
Combined  aerators  and  coolers,  suitable  for  use  with  well  water  or  ice  water, 
can  be  had  at  any  dairy-supply  house  at  a  small  cost.  I»y  using  one  of  these, 
the  cow  odor,  the  animal  heat,  and  much  of  the  dirt  can  be  removed  from  milk 
in  a  few  minutes. 

The  milk  should  be  cooled  to  4.")°  if  for  shipment,  or  to  <>0°  if  for  home  use 
or  delivery  to  a  factory.  Never  mix  fresh,  warm  milk  with  that  which  has 
been  cooled. 

DO  NOT    ALLOW     THK     MILK     TO    FKKK/E. 

When  cans  are  hauled  a  distance,  they  should  be  full  and  carried  in  a  spring 
wagon.  In  hot  weather  cover  the  cans,  when  moved  in  a  wagon,  with  a  clean 
wet  blanket  or  canvas. 

If  milk  is  stored,  it  should  be  held  in  tanks  of  fresh  cold  water,  renewing 
daily  in  a  clean,  cold,  dry  room.  Clean  all  dairy  utensils  by  tirst  thoroughly 
rinsing  them  in  warm  water:  then  clean  inside  and  out  with  a  brush  and  hot 
water  in  which  a  cleansing  material  is  dissolved:  then  rinse,  and  lastly  sterilize 
by  boiling  water  or  steam.  I'se  pure  water  only. 

After  cleaning,  keep  the  utensils  inverted  in  pure  air  and  sun.  if  possible, 
until  wanted  for  use.  Old  cans,  in  which  parts  of  the  tin  are  worn  off.  or 
where  there  are  seams  and  cracks,  are  impossible  to  keep  clean  and  should  not 
be-  employed. 

PHILADELPHIA.  .!/«//  /,  /.'"/-. 

DEAR  SIR:  We  wish  to  caution  you  about  f/i'nxxjj  mill,',  as  it  is  very  objection- 
able to  most  people  and  causes  much  trouble  a'.id  loss  of  sale,  therefore  we  urge 
the  utmost  care  in  turning  out  cattle  to  grass.  The  first  day  they  should  he 
allowed  to  stay  out  a  very  short  while:  then  increase  the  time  limit  a  little 
each  day  until  the  effect  wears  off  and  the  cow's  system  becomes  used  to  the 
change  of  diet. 

Watch  for  t/nrlic.  as  it  entirely  spoils  milk  and  cream  for  sale.  Always  use 
an  in'nil'tr.  winter  and  summer,  and  ice,  when  necessary,  so  as  to  get  tem- 
.perature  of  milk  down  to  ./'/  <»•  ~><>  ilct/rcc^.  See  that  your  tinn  are  in  good 


58  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

condition    and    cleanly.     (let    the    best    nt  miner    possible,    as    sediment    is    very 
unpleasant  in  milk. 

If  you  will  observe  the  foregoing  rules,  many  of  the  evils  of  the  milk  business 
can  be  corrected. 

Very  respectfully.  — . 

USE    OF    ICE. 

The  use  of  ice  is  increasing,  particularly  in  the  level  districts  of 
Now  Jersey.  In  the  hilly  portions  of  Pennsylvania  the  producers 
depend  to  a  considerable  extent  on  the  old-time  spring  houses,  where 
the  milk  is  cooled  by  running  spring  water  of  a  temperature  of  some 
5i2c  to  54°  F.  These  spring  houses  are  "  hold-overs "  from  old 
butter-making  days.  In  some  instances  there  is  too  much  decaying 
wood  about  them  to  make  them  ideal.  Dealers  try  to  have  the  milk 
delivered  at  the  station  at  from  -V>c  to  (50°  F..  and  a  few  attempt  to 
have  the  farmers  cool  it  down  to  ?r2z'  or  .">:-> s  F. 

(.EXEIJAL    REMARKS    CONCERNING    THE    MILK    BUSINESS    IX    THE    COUNTHV. 

For  conveying  the  milk  to  the  railroad  stations  the  farmers  use  any 
farm  wagons  which  they  may  happen  to  have.  More  mules  are 
used  for  draft  purposes  than  are  seen  in  connection  with  the  New 
York  or  Boston  supply.  The  milk  for  the  most  part  reaches  the 
station  only  a  few  minutes  before  the  train  is  due.  and  it  is  not  many 
minutes  from  the  farmer's  wagon  to  the  car. 

The  average  dairy  contains  from  1~>  to  •_!()  cows  and  product's  from 
80  to  1:20  quarts  of  milk  daily.  Some  of  the  big  dairies  produce 
from  WO  to  400  quarts  of  milk  daily. 

One  of  the  great  drawbacks  to  the  business  in  Philadelphia,  as 
elsewhere,  is  uneven  production.  Sometimes  when  there  is  a  surplus 
producers  are  asked  to  hold  back  one  day's  supply  every  seventh  day. 
There  is  a  large  seashore  demand  from  the  Xew  Jersey  resorts,  and 
this  helps  to  even  up  the  supply  on  the  Philadelphia  market.  It  is 
claimed  that  there  is  now  a  tendency  among  the  farmers  to  more  even 
production.  One  dealer  said  that  many  farmeis  who  once  produced. 
for  instance.  1<50  quarts  per  dav  in  the  summer,  and  40  in  the  winter, 
now  produce  1(50  in  the  summer  and  M)  in  the  winter.  The  average 
farmer's  haul  was  variously  estimated  at  from  U  to  -21,  mile:-,  with 
probably  about  4  mile-  as  the  maximum.  There  are  receiving  station- 
in  the  country  for  handling  mo>t  of  the  supplv  of  long-distance  milk. 

One  exception  mav  be  mentioned  to  the  usual  way  of  doing  husi- 
ne>-.  One  dealer  had  a  -hipping  station  at  which  deliveries  were 
made  twice  a  day.  the  milk  being  brought  in  while  still  warm  and 
promptly  cooled  and  aerated  at  the  station. 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,  NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  59 

WORK   OF  THE   PHILADELPHIA   PEDIATKIC   SOCIETY. 

The  Philadelphia  Podiatric  Society  is.  as  (he  name  implies,  an 
association  of  Philadelphia  physicians  who  arc  especially  interested 
in  the  treatment  of  diseases  of  children.  It  was  organized  in  181)5 
for  hearing  and  discussing  papers  on  the  disorders  of  children.  A 
society  with  such  a  mission  naturally  early  in  its  history  consid- 
ered the  milk  question,  and  in  1S(.)S  a  committee  was  appointed  to  take 
some  definite  steps  looking  to  securing  better  milk  for  babies  (par- 
ticularly those  who  were  not  strong)  than  could  be  obtained  from 
the  ordinary  milk  dealer.  This  committee  submitted  its  report,  which 
was  accepted,  and  the  scheme  suggested  was  under  way  in  1 !)()().  This 
organization  proceeded  on  the  theory  that  the  best  milk  for  infant 
feeding  is  natural  untreated  milk  from  healthy  cows,  produced  under 
sanitary  conditions,  and  absolutely  sweet  and  clean.  The  committee 
having  this  matter  in  charge  is  known  as  the  "  Milk  Commission  of 
the  Philadelphia  Pediatric  Society."  The  work  is  done  gratuitously 
for  the  sake  of  improving  the  milk  supply,  the  onlv  expense  being 
for  inspection,  which  is  paid  by  the  dairies  inspected.  The  regula- 
tions call  for  the  periodical  examination  of  the  health  of  the  cows. 
the  cleanliness  of  the  dairy,  the  care  and  cleanliness  observed  in  milk- 
ing, the  care  of  the  utensils  used,  the  nature'  and  quality  of  the  food, 
and  the  health  of  the  employees  on  the  farm.  In  more  detail,  this 
means  that  the  cows  must  be  tested  with  tuberculin,  the  stables  must 
have  an  abundance  of  light,  there  must  be  some  satisfactory  system 
of  ventilation,  the  dairy  room  must  be  free  from  stable  odors,  the 
stable  gutters  must  be  frequently  cleaned,  and  the  cows  must  be  kept 
dry  and  clean;  the  stables  must  be  so  constructed  that  they  can  bo 
kept  clean  at  all  times,  the  water  supply  must  be  pure,  the  dairy  room 
must  have  a  sterilizer  for  bottles  and  other  utensils,  and  the  milk  must 
be  immediately  cooled  and  bottled  in  a  room  apart  from  the  stable" 
and  free  from  odor  and  dust. 

The  milk  which  results  from  this  care  is  regularly  examined  chem- 
ically and  baeteriologically  to  ascertain  if  all  of  the  requirements  as 
to  health  and  cleanliness  have  been  met  and  to  see  that  there  is  no 
adulteration.  It  must  range  from  1.0-J!)  to  l.(KU  specific  gravity,  bo 
neutral  or  faintly  acid  in  reaction,  contain  between  .'>..">  and  !..">  pel- 
cent  proteid.  from  4-  to  •">  per  cent  sugar,  and  not  less  than  •">..*>  per  cent 
fat;  it  must  bo  free  from  all  contaminating  foreign  matter  and  from 
all  addition  of  chemical  substances  or  coloring  matter.  It  must 
further  be  free  from  pus  and  injurious  germs  and  have  not  more  than 
10.000  bacteria  of  any  kind  to  the  cubic  centimeter.  If  milk  meets 
all  these  conditions  a  certificate  is  issued.  Cream  i>  also  certified  to 
as  to  the  amount  of  fat.  and  in  the  case  of  cream  a  bacterial  limit  of 


60  BUREAU  OF  ANIMAL  INDUSTRY. 

^5,000  is  allowed.  These  certificates  are  issued  each  month  and  are 
good  for  that  month  only.  If  at  any  time  the  inspections  show  im- 
perfect conditions,  or  if  the  milk  in  any  way  fails  to  come  up  to  the 
standard,  the  certificates  are  withheld  for  the  following  month.  The 
certificates  read  as  follows : 

riimvDKUMiiA   I'EDIATKIC  SOCIETY. 
.Mi  Jit'  co»nitixni<>ii  certificate. 


Milk  from  the  dairy  of  -  -  has  boon  recently  examined  by  tbe 
experts  of  the  milk  commission  and  found  to  be  fully  up  to  tlio  required 
standards.  Another  examination  will  bo  im.de  within  a  month  and,  if  satis- 
factory, new  labels  for  the  bottles  will  be  issued,  dated  -  — ,  1  !.)().">. 

Notice  the  dates. 

A  facsimile  of  one  of  the  certificates,  printed  in  small  si/e,  accom- 
panies each  bottle  of  milk,  either  pasted  over  the  mouth  of  the  jar  or 
otherwise  attached  to  it. 

When  these  regulations  and  this  standard  were  adopted,  the  dairy- 
men of  the  city  were  invited  to  avail  themselves  of  the  advantages 
offered  by  the  society.  The  circular  which  was  issued  stated: 

If  you  do  not  wish  to  have  your  milk  so  examined,  the  commission  does  noth- 
ing prejudicial  to  your  interests:  but  it  is  believed  that  it  would  be  to  the 
advantage  of  the  physicians  and  the  better  class  of  milk  producers  to  have  some 
such  method  of  examination  under  the  supervision  of  a  committee  appointed 
by  the  society,  composed  of  physicians  interested  in  the  welfare  and  treatment 
of  children. 

Thus  the  matter  of  milk  examination  is  entirely  voluntary  and  no 
dairyman  is  obliged  to  enter  into  the  scheme  or  to  continue  in  it. 

When  the  plan  was  broached  it  suggested  considerable  extra  ex- 
pense, with  the  uncertainty  of  getting  any  additional  income.  Conse- 
quently less  than  half  a  dozen  dairies  asked  to  have  their  milk 
certified.  Hut  those  who  did  take  up  the  matter  found  that  there 
was  a  demand  for  that  kind  of  milk,  and  the  amount  of  milk  and 
cream  certified  has  gradually  increased  until  at  the  present  time  the 
commission  is  putting  out  over  If 8,000  certificates  per  month,  which 
represents  the  product  of  over  400  cows.  This  growth  is  regarded 
as  satisfactory  by  the  commission  and  the  reputation  of  the  plan  is 
spreading,  and  inquiries  concerning  it  are  frequently  received,  some 
of  them  coming  from  foreign  countries.  One  gratifying  feature  of 
the  plan  is  its  popularity  with  the  public.  Those  who  use  this  certi- 
fied milk  are  perfectly  willing  to  pay  the  extra  price  required.  The 
interest  in  the  measure'  is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  if  for  any  reason 
the  certificate  of  any  dairy  is  withheld,  the  fact  is  noticed  at  once  by 
many  consumers  and  inquiries  are  at  once  made  of  the  commission 
as  to  the  cause  of  the  nonappearance  of  the  certificate.  In  noting 


MILK    SUPPLY    OF    BOSTON,   NEW    YORK,  PHILADELPHIA.  61 

(he  few  dairymen  who  have  adopted  the  plan  of  supplying  certified 
milk  it  should  be  remembered  that  the  standard  is  very  high,  because 
the  prime  object  of  the  Pediatric  Society  is  to  get  the  best  unpasteur- 
i/ed  milk  possible  for  infant  feeding,  rather  than  to  raise  the  quality 
of  the  general  city  supply. 

DKSCHirriON    (>!•'    A    <  KltTI  FIKI)    .MILK    DAIRY. 

One  dairy  which  has  built  up  its  business  exclusively  on  the  certi- 
fied advertisement  was  visited  by  the  writer.  One  hundred  and 
fifty-five  cows  are  milked.  The.  cows  are  grade  Guernseys  and  Hol- 
steins.  The  cow  barns  are  one  story  high,  with  monitor  roof  for 
ventilation.  Windows  are  numerous,  and  the  place  fairly  glistens 
with  bright  whitewash.  The  stanchions  and  all  the  supporting 
framework  are  of  iron  pipe.  The  floor  is  of  cement.  As  each  cow 
is  milked  the  milk  is  taken  to  an  adjoining  room,  where  an  attendant 
"weighs  it,  makes  a  record  of  the  weight,  and  turns  the  milk  into  a  40- 
quart  can.  As  soon  as  this  is  filled  it  is  transported  by  a  cable  carrier 
to  the  dairy  building.  The  interior  of  the  dairy  room  is  entirely  of 
cement,  including  floors,  walls,  and  ceiling.  Screens  keep  out  all 
flies.  The  dairy  room  is  also  fitted  with  all  needed  appliances  for 
washing  and  sterilizing  the  bottles  before  milk  is  put  into  them. 
The  sinks  are  of  soapstone.  The  cooler  hangs  in  the  middle  of  the 
dairy  room.  There  are  no  corners  or  angles  to  catch  or  conceal  dirt, 
and  everything  is  spotlessly  clean. 

Here  the  milk  is  cooled  and  bottled,  the  bottles  placed  in  boxes 
holding  one  do/en  each,  and  packed  in  ice.  It  leaves  the  farm  at  !».:>•"> 
p.  m.  and  reaches  the  city  at  11  p.  in.  The  delivery  begins  about  3 
in  the  morning.  This  dairy  has  its  own  teams  and  men  in  the  city, 
so  that  the  whole  process  of  production  and  delivery  is  under  its 
control. 

When  the  milk  is  bottled  the  usual  pasteboard  cap  is  placed  over 
ihe  top  of  the  bottle,  then  the  certificate  of  the  Pediatric  Society  is 
placed  over  that,  and  a  round  piece  of  parchment  paper  .">  [  inches  in 
diameter  is  placed  over  the  whole  and  held  in  place  by  a  rubber  band. 
On  the  top  of  the  bottle  the  name  of  the  dairy  and  the  inscription 
"  Five  per  cent  butter  fat  "  or  "  Four  per  cent  butter  fat."  as  the 
case  may  be.  are  in  plain  sight.  Cream  is  put  up  in  the  same  way, 
with  a  label  "Sixteen  per  cent  butter  fat  "  or  ''Twenty-five  per  cent 
butter  fat."  as  the  case  may  be.  This  milk  retails  in  Philadelphia 
for  1-  cents  per  quart,  or  7  cents  per  pint.  It  retails  in  Atlantic  City 
in  the  summer  for  10  cents  per  quart.  It  is  sometimes  claimed  in 
other  places  that  the  public  is  not  educated  to  know  the  dim-rent 
values  of  different  grades  of  milk,  but  the  customers  of  the  dairy  are 
very  quick  to  note  the  fact  and  complain  if  by  accident  a  driver  may 


62  BUREAU    OF    ANIMAL    INDUSTRY. 

happen  to  deliver  a  can  of  4  per  cent  milk  instead  of  5  per  cent. 
Both  kinds,  however,  are  retailed  at  the  same  price,  as  the  managers 
claim  that  there  is  no  difference  in  the  cost  of  production; 

This  milk  is  regularly  tested  for  bacteria,  and  usually  ranges  be- 
tween 500  and  1.000  per  cubic  centimeter.  In  exceptional  cases  the 
number  rises  to  5.000.  But  the  Pediatric  Society  allows  10.000.  In 
this  connection  it  is  interesting  to  note,  for  purposes  of  comparison, 
that  the  Boston  Board  of  Health  has  made  a  standard  for  the  general 
supply  of  that  city  of  500.000. 


o 


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(Continued  fro 

u.  ^uicoln,  fiirt-  Tennessee  Packing  and 
ision  Co.,  Niishville,  Tenn. 
Long,  care  Spcrry  «V   Barne.s,  New   Haven, 
ill. 

J.  Loveberry,  room  102.  CiMom-Ilouse  (new), 
ortland,  < ' 

r.  II.  1).  Mayne.  Mulon,-.  X.  V. 
>r.  Louis  Metskcr,  room  •_"_'.  N.  T.  Armijo  Build- 
ing. Albuquerque,  X.  Mex. 
""Xv.  Miller,  care  John  Morrell  &  Co.,  Oltuinwii. 

[owa. 

Dr.  C.  L.  Morin.  St.  Albans,  Vt. 
.  >r.  A.  B.  .Morse   care  The  Agar  Packing  Co.,  Des 
Moines.  Iowa. 

W.  J.  Murphy,  care  Springfield  Provision  Co., 
htwood.  Ma>-. 
XT   Neil,  care  John  Cndahy  Co.,  Wichita, 

^..  , .  A.  Norgaard,  Holuxlulu.  Hawaii. 

Dr.  F.  M.  Perry,  Fort  Fairfleld,  Me. 

Dr.  G.  NV.  Pope,  Animal  Quarantine  Station, 
Athenia.  X.  J. 

Dr.  H.  T.  Potter,  Calais,  Me. 

Dr.  .1.  O.  F.  Price,  care  Brittain  &  Co.,  Marshall- 
town,  Iowa. 

Dr.  R.  A.  Ramsay,  Fargo,  N.  Dak. 


A     001  120  184     5 


I)r.  A.  (I.  (',.  Richardson,  707  Empire  Building 
Knoxvill.',  Tenn. 

Dr.  A.  K.  Kishel,  cnn-  Cudahy  Packing  Co.  Los 
Angeles.  Cal. 

Dr.  \V.  II.  KOM-,  IS  Broadway,  New  York,  X.  Y. 

Dr.  K.  L.  Russell,  Orono.  Me. 

Dr.  .1.  F.  Kyder.  Ill  Milk  st..  Boston,  Mass. 

Dr.  K.  P.  Schaffter,  care  Cleveland  Provision  Co., 
Cleveland,  Ohio. 

Dr.  C.  A.  Schaufler,  134  South  Second  st.,  Phila- 
delphia, 1'a. 

Dr.  Thos.  \V.  Scott,  care  The  Rath  Packing  Co., 
Waterloo,  Iowa. 

Dr.T.  A.  Shipley,  care  T.  M. Sinclair  A:  Co.  (Ltd.), 
Cedar  Kapids,  Iowa. 

Dr.  N.  C.  Soreiisen.  care  Kingan  A  Co.,  Indian- 
apolis, ind. 

Mr.  Win.  II.  Wade,  Animal  C^uanuitine  Station, 
Halethorp,  Md. 

Dr.  H.X.  Waller.  109  West  42d  st.,  Xew  York,  X.  Y. 

Dr.  (i.  W.  Ward.  Newport,  Vt. 

Dr.  B.  P.  Wende.  Live/ Stock  Exchange  Building 
East  Buffalo,  X.  Y. 

Dr.  \V.  H.  Wray,34  Streatham  Hill,  London.  S.W., 
England. 


DAIRY    INSPECTORS. 

M.  W.Lang,  room.':!.  Marine  Building,  Cliicago,Ill.   ;  B.  F.  Van  Valkenlmrgh,  lti.s  Chambers  st     Xew 
Robert  McAdam,  room  23,  Marine  Building,  Chi-          York   \   Y 

''"^V1"-      ••,*  \  Levi    Wells    (Bradford    County^" 

E.  A.  McDonald,  58  and  59  Downs  Block,  Seattle,   |       Pa.  \ 

Wash.  I  G.  M.  Whitaker,  P.  O.  Box  1332,  Boston\Mass. 


ring    Hill, 


YRL/LL 

JOLA  ACCESS  SERVIC! 

-•'.ib'fr/  Leans 
^0  University  Resarch  Llbn 


